Alternative
by royaiblue
Summary: [Orange AU - Full list of warnings inside] Out of seven people, six people received the letters sent to them from their 26 year old selves in the future. They warned them that someone from the Generation of Miracles is fated to die, and that they must save him. Now, it's a race against time to save the person they most dearly love.
1. letter one

**SUMMARY**

[Orange AU] Out of seven people, six people received the letters sent to them from their 26 year old selves in the future. They warned them that someone from the Generation of Miracles is fated to die, and that they must save him. Now, it's a race against time to save the person they most dearly love.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

This is a Kuroko no Basuke fanfiction with most of the plot line taken from the anime and manga Orange. Major warning however, I have changed the plot line slightly to be more original and suspenseful. The name of the person who dies will be unknown until the end or unless a character's letter reveals the name. Other notes, there are seven members of the Generation of Miracles. In my count, I did include Momoi and Kuroko simply because I feel like they belonged in the group. These two also play a huge factor in the plot, and you'll see why in this chapter. Teiko is now a high school, and the Miracles do play basketball together there. Several other members from other teams will be making appearances as well at Teiko, some more important than others. Lastly, there are pairings in this fic. The main pairing that I will focus on is AkaKuro, while the secondary one is MidoTaka. There will be mentions of MuraHimu and AoKise, though I probably won't say it exclusively.

Because Orange and Kuroko no Basuke are known for the mentions of certain psychological conditions, this fanfiction will include them as well. Many of them are canon, while others are speculations. This list is mostly finalized, with the exception of minor characters that I have not realized existed and given them a proper backstory to. However, the following are definites. Many chapters of this fic will have an asterisk in the author's note with the exact conditions and disorders that the chapter will mention. If at some point you refuse to read a chapter because of something, please PM me asking for a summary of the chapter. I'd be more than glad to give you one. I also aplogize in advance if any of these have been depicted wrongly. Please also tell me if I have depicted a scene wrong, so that I can change it immediately.

List: Suicide, depression, anxiety, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), Binge Eating Disorder, Self Esteem and Abandonment Issues, Alcohol Abuse.

I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or the characters, nor do I own Orange.

* * *

 **APRIL 6**

Six envelopes made their way into the possession of six people the night before. Most of them noticed the letter addressed to them before they departed the house, but thought nothing of it as they walked to school that morning with their group of friends. Some of them left their letters in their room, others found it wise to at least bring the letter with them, in case it was important. As they left their houses for the opening ceremony, they gathered each other to walk to school as the friends they were. After all, they were famously known as the Generation of Miracles on the court, but mismatched friends off the court.

This morning was not unusual at all for the Generation of Miracles. The light and shadow duo, Aomine Daiki and Kuroko Tetsuya, were messing around as usual (more so of the former than the latter). Midorima Shintaro was gripping his lucky item tightly as he bickered with Murasakibara Atsushi and his poor eating habits. Meanwhile, Kise Ryota was attracting quite a bit of attention as fangirls screamed all around him. Akashi Seijuro, the captain of the Generation of Miracles, ordered him to shoo his fans away, and without verbal complaint, Kise did just that.

The rainbow group of friends were attracting quite a bit of attention, not just Kise and his model status. An odd bunch like them with rainbow colored hair would stand out a lot in a place like Tokyo, and more so in the more rural areas of the nation. Either way, seeing the amount of people's stares, Akashi hurried the group to reach the school so to lessen the amount of weird stares that they were receiving. As usual, most of them were oblivious to said stares, but moved quickly because it was Akashi who commanded it.

"We should have just gotten a limo if you wanted to make us move that fast," Aomine groaned.

Kuroko jabbed him in the side, earning a yelp from his light.. "Aomine-kun, that would be imposing on his things and lifestyle. It would not be polite." Aomine grumbled, but didn't argue.

The Generation of Miracles filed into the auditorium and sat in their respective seats, waiting for the the opening ceremony to start for the semester. Several people noticed them on the way in and pointed them out, but no one stopped to talk to them. Mostly, the Generation of Miracles were focused on their own group, fixing people's uniforms (like Aomine's and his scruffiness), and other things they had to do. Midorima Shintarou, the shooting guard in the Generation of Miracles, was holding a flower scented Air Wick as his lucky item for the day. Seated next to Akashi, who was also the student council president, he was preparing the redhead for his speech to the incoming first years.

A half hour later, the opening ceremony began. The ceremony was not interesting, to say the least, even for Akashi and his speech. The only memorable moment was the fact that Momoi Satsuki, the manager for the Generation of Miracles, did not attend. Aomine contacted her during the ceremony, wondering where she was. Momoi hasn't responded yet.

"Nothing's wrong with Momoicchi, right?" Kise asked the group, but no one replied.

"Sacchin's probably sick or something," Murasakibara guessed.

Now, the students were expected to spend the afternoon in homeroom, getting familiar with school procedures before the semester officially started tomorrow. The Generation of Miracles were spread out among the five homerooms for their year. Akashi and Midorima, along with the absent Momoi, were in the same class.

Akashi and Midorima had chosen their seats in the class, next to each other, and were talking when someone interrupted them. "Sorry I'm late, everyone!" a girl huffed from the doorway. Akashi and Midorima recognized the girl as Momoi, and greeted her politely. As Momoi explained why she was late (she overslept), the homeroom teacher entered the room. The class quieted down almost instantaneously and rose for the teacher.

"Good afternoon, teacher," the class chorused, and the teacher proceeded with affairs from there.

* * *

After the day ended, the loud squeaks of basketball shoes hitting the floor in the gym were heard even outside the first string gym. Akashi was running drills for their members, and they were currently doing suicides. Midorima was evaluating the Generation of Miracles's performances during practices, while Akashi focuses on the bigger picture. Kise, Aomine, and Murasakibara were doing well in suicides, but Kuroko was close to passing out on the court. As a result, Momoi pulled him aside.

Once everyone had completed the normal amount of suicides, there was a five minute water break. Kise was lying flat on his back on the bench, panting.

"Why is training so hard, Aominecchi," he whispered and whined into Aomine's ears, far away from Akashi's hearing range.

Aomine, choosing not to respond verbally and take the risk, texted the blonde kid his response. Usually his responses provoke some fake tears from Kise as well, and this one was no different. Kuroko had to jab him to make him stop before he really did capture everyone's attention.

"Kurokocchi, sometimes I really do envy you," Kise blurted out spontaneously.

"How so?" Kuroko asked.

Kise opened his mouth to respond, but Aomine covered it with his hand. "Shut up before Akashi hears." Kise tried to whine too, but Aomine didn't move. "I'm saving you from more. Shut the hell up."

That shut Kise up for a while.

Midorima came around to the bench, taking a huge swig of water. "Fools. You make too much noise," he complained.

The whistle blew as Midorima was speaking, and Akashi was standing by the free throw line. He was holding a basketball in his hand. Behind him stood Momoi, clipboard in hand, and the entire second string in their jerseys.

It didn't take a detective to figure out what was going on. Akashi had planned a match of first string versus second string, and now was game time. The Generation of Miracles stripped off their white t-shirts, donning their jerseys. Some of the first string players dashed into the locker room, putting on their jerseys.

Akashi stepped towards the first string bench. Momoi would be handling everything with the second string, along with their sub-captain. "Aomine, Midorima, Murasakibara, Haizaki, and I will be starting today's match. Kise and Kuroko, you two will be subbed in when we need it. The rest of you are on reserve for now. Is that clear?"

"Yes, captain!" several members responded.

The starting members entered the court, along with the second string's chosen members. Teiko's official coach, Shirogane, acted as referee for the match. Tossing the ball into the air, the match began.

It was not much of a match since the Generation of Miracles were playing their second string. Though they weren't bad players, they were not first string material yet. Plus, it was really a chance for the second string to get better. Akashi needed new blood in first string, especially since he was short in a couple of positions.

At the end of the game, Akashi called for a meeting of both first and second string. There, he surprised everyone by saying that he would treat that game as a placement test, and thus he promoted three people to first string right on the spot.

"Takao Kazunari. Hyuuga Junpei. Himuro Tatsuya. Congratulations on your promotion to first string. Please await further instructions from myself and Coach Shirogane in a few minutes. Other than that, practice is finished for the day. Go home and get some rest. Well done everyone," Akashi announced.

The new additions celebrated their promotion to first string, while others congratulated them. Many of the second string players had been shocked at the announcement of the promotion, but believed that they deserved their spots in first string.

The Generation of Miracles, save for Akashi, headed back into the locker room to change into their uniforms. Kise recapped a couple good dunks during the game, while Aomine argued over how childish some of them looked. Murasakibara complained about the noise level from them, saying how he would squish them if they didn't shut up. Of course, he had a maiubo in his hand right after the game. Midorima ordered all of them to clean up the locker room before they left that night.

"Dai-chan!" Momoi called out when the Miracles left the locker room, bags in tow. "Let's go home." Aomine stared at his childhood friend as if she was crazy. He didn't feel like leaving yet. Momoi glared at him until she caught sight of Kuroko, which was rare. His lack of presence still made him hard to find, even though they've been friends for a year now. "Tetsu-kun!" she called out, leaping onto the phantom player.

"Momoi-san," Kuroko said, not moving from his position. Aomine forced Momoi off of him, complaining about how she was making him uncomfortable. "Do you want to walk home with us?" he asked politely.

"Yes," she said instantly. Taking a good look around her, at the rest of the Miracles who were watching, she invited the rest of them along. "Mukkun, Midorin, Ki-kun, Akashi-kun, let's go home together."

Akashi thought about it for a moment. "Of course, Momoi," he replied, allowing himself to indulge in the moment for now. The others agreed, after hearing their captain accept the invitation. After all, it was rare that Akashi Seijuro came along with them.

They headed towards the park, located in a central part of Tokyo. Though the city was bustling that night with street music, flashing lights, and crowds of people, they didn't seem to mind it. The Generation of Miracles stopped by the usual convenience store, and Murasakibara ended up buying the popsicles for tonight after a game of rock-paper-scissors.

"What flavor do we want?" Murasakibara drawled.

"Strawberry," was the unanimous decision.

Murasakibara disappeared into the store, leaving the rest outside. He returned a minute later, two boxes of popsicles in a bag. Everyone reached in for one box, knowing how much Murasakibara would be protective of the other box.

Kise ripped the wrapper off his popsicle and started eating. Aomine licked his, savoring the cold, sweet flavor of the popsicle. Kuroko stood next to him, doing the same thing. Akash bit into his popsicle.

"Wonder what would happen if we didn't play basketball. Like, what if we played soccer? Or Kurokocchi was a genius player at checkers and I was a volleyball star," Kise asked. "Would we have met?"

The others gave some thought to it. "We might have, at some point," Midorima replied. "Some of us share classes, nanodayo."

"Yeah, Tetsu's in my class this year!" Aomine exclaimed, hugging Kuroko by the neck. Kuroko complained about not being able to breathe, and Aomine let go of his shadow.

Kise's jaw dropped. "But I want another class with Kurokocchi!" he whined. "I got stuck with Murasakibaracchi."

"Eh?" Murasakibara asked. "Oh, Kise-chin. We sit near each other in class."

"But would we talk to each other?" Kise asked, getting serious again.

"Most likely not, due to our differences in personality and tastes," Akashi answered. "Some of us have noticed, but we even as a group have clashing personalities. It's a wonder how we stay together, as a matter of fact." Kuroko nodded, agreeing with the statement.

"Akashi-kun is right in his thinking, as always," Kuroko said. "But he is also stupid sometimes. We could have been oddly paired up, or we could have been interested in each other's clubs. We don't know, which makes the future like that interesting. Our decisions are deciding our present, and they will decide our future."

Everyone was silent for moments afterwards. Whenever Kuroko speaks, it's intelligent, or at least it is a good portion of the time.

Aomine finished his popsicle first, and tosses the stick into the trash can after realizing that he didn't win. Kise followed after him. Soon, all the Miracles had finished their popsicles, including Murasakibara and his extra box. Meanwhile, no one really said anything. Kuroko had indeed set the mood to dark.

"We should go to the arcade one night," Kise offered. "Let's do that next week." Some of them responded with maybes, and one with a definitive yes (Aomine).

"Let's go home for the night, though," Akashi stated. "It's getting late."

"Yes, mother," Aomine teased the point guard, earning one of Akashi's scary looks.

* * *

Momoi laid in bed that night, the letter open in her hand. She had been late today and purposefully missed the opening ceremony because she thought it was vital that she read the letter. Clearly, she had been correct in her thinking, because the letter contained important information.

Sprawled out on her bed, she stared at her ceiling. Thoughts ran through her head, and the events of today only kept adding to the situation. The elusiveness of the letter, and what Kuroko had said today, Momoi had to wonder if what the letter said was true.

 _Dear Momoi Satsuki,_

 _To the me that is in high school, how are you? I am writing this to you from ten years in the future. If you're wondering why I am writing, it is because I have something that I need you to do. I hope you don't repeat the same mistakes I did, for it will only lead up to the current future. And that future, you will end up carrying a lifetime of regret. Ten years in the future, one of the Miracles will no longer be by your side. Please don't let the important things go by so easily. Please watch over them closely. Please choose the right path._

 _April 6: You will wake up late because the alarm clock is broken. Nigou broke it. You miss the opening ceremony, but your homeroom class is with Akashi and Midorima. During practice, Akashi will promote 3 second stringers to first string._

Today's future was spot on, Momoi admitted. She suspected the future version of her was still as good as ever with picking up information, since it was detailed like she does now. But the authenticity of the letter and some contents, she didn't want to believe. She doubted the idea of time travel. Even more, she doubted how one of them was gone in the future.

It wasn't true, right? Who was the dead person? How did she acquire that much regret? Was that much even possible? What was going on between the Generation of Miracles?

Momoi dug through the pages of the letter. Some of them fell to the floor as she read them, searching for the answers she desperately needed. She found the last page, scanning through it multiple times. The last date written was the day after the Winter Cup ended, and it so happened to be the day the person died. To Momoi's shock, however, the person who died still wasn't listed.

"How could my future self extract that kind of information?" she cursed. "Momoi Satsuki, tell me this instant! Tell me who dies!"

Momoi Satsuki, someone who dearly cares for all of her friends and teammates, was left sobbing by the edge of her bed. The letter ended up covering a good portion of her bed and floor, dripping in tear stains as if it was weeping too.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Did you like it? I'm excited to write this, especially since I love suspenseful stories. Please review if you want a faster update!


	2. letter two

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

If I wasn't hyped for this fanfiction, I am super hyped now! I love everyone's feedback to this fanfiction so far, and I hope I continue to exceed your expectations. This chapter begins to weave in some important details about the characters, as well as some hints to the identity of the mystery person. The names of the people in Kirisaki Dai Ichi have not changed (I think this is one out of two schools that do not have a change in members). Please continue to read and review, as usual.

I do not own Kuroko no Basuke (I wish).

* * *

 **APRIL 20**

Teiko High School's basketball team was scheduled to host a practice match against Kirisaki Dai Ichi after school today. Knowing what lied ahead of them, the first string players were working themselves to the bone, ensuring victory in the eyes of Akashi Seijuro himself.

Aomine was doing a one on one versus Kise, and Kuroko was the referee of their match. So far, Kise was losing to him, 2-0. It wasn't new that Kise was losing; no, the blonde boy was always losing when it came to Aomine. He was simply too strong for him, and Kise had no intention on copying his skills either.

Akashi had Midorima and Murasakibara square against each other. Midorima was to work on his perfect three pointers, while Murasakibara was warming up his blocks. Although, the way that Akash had paired them up, they were going to fight in order to reveal the better man between them. Murasakibara, after all, was the only person who could block Midorima's shots. His height was advantageous.

Momoi sat on the bench, observing everyone's skills and figuring out how they would grow as a player. She devised a new training menu for Midorima, based on her observations on his shooting against Murasakibara. Realizing that his endurance level is a tad too low for her liking, she decided that that would be the skill that he would work on after today's practice match. Hopefully his endurance wouldn't give out later.

Akashi blew the whistle, signaling everyone that their little fun time was over. He had used their fun time as a bit of a warm up, and now he would begin the actual warm up to make sure the right muscles were being used. "50 push ups, start!"

Everyone dropped to the floor and began their fifty push ups. Many finished before the three minute buzzer, but Kuroko was already down on the ground, panting, after 20. Akashi didn't pay much attention though; he was aware of Kuroko's limits. Momoi handled his training menus as well, and she usually kept his lighter than everyone else's.

"Begin layups!" Akashi called out, tossing a ball at Kise, who was the closest to one of the nets. Kise caught it and tossed in a layup. The rest of the first stringers formed a line behind him to do their layups.

Kuroko missed all of his layups, which resulted in Aomine hitting him on the head. "At least make one, Tetsu."

"Sorry, Aomine-kun," Kuroko apologized. Aomine ruffled his hair and told him to not worry about it so much.

Momoi was asked by Akashi to lead the Kirisaki Dai Ichi players from the gates of Teiko into the spare locker room meant for the opposing team. Teiko High School often hosts a lot of the practice matches, so they had several extra locker rooms. Akashi frequently had to remind the first year basketball players that they were off limits for them, and they should use the lockers assigned to them.

Speaking of first years, tryouts for placement were held a week ago in the second string gym. Akashi and Midorima, as captain and vice captain for Teiko, oversaw the placement tests. In the end, there were no noteworthy member amongst them that they could promote immediately to first string, but many of them had redeeming qualities and lots of potential. Midorima promoted them to second string. Thirty of them were left to fill up the third string.

Akashi heard the gym door open, revealing Momoi and the first string team from Kirisaki Dai Ichi. Led by Hanamiya Makoto, one of the Five Uncrowned Kings, their presence was menacing. The Generation of Miracles could feel the sickening aura radiating off of them.

"I don't like where this is going, Kurokocchi," Kise whispered to Kuroko, who had been standing next to him.

"Neither do I, Kise-kun," Kuroko replied, observing the opponent's team carefully. He noticed the devilish grins on their faces, especially on Hanamiya himself. Even with the name Generation of Miracles surrounding their school, not many schools really took the threat to heart. Many schools haven't even fought against them.

"They think we're just another bunch of overpowered weaklings, don't they," Aomine said. "Sorry, but the only person who can beat me is me."

Kuroko jabbed him in the ribs. "Don't be cocky, Aomine-kun. I think we need to be on our guard for this match. They don't look like the types to stick by the rules."

Akashi nodded. "Well spotted, Kuroko. You are correct in your thinking. Kirisaki Dai Ichi is well known for their tactics in basketball, though not amongst the referees of the game. We are fortunate to have Momoi with us. She has gathered quite a bit of information about this team, including their rough plays."

"Rough plays?" Kise asked.

Momoi spoke. "Kirisaki Dai Ichi is famous for being able to cause injuries to key players during matches that they have a chance of losing. Their captain and coach, Hanamiya Makoto, initiates them, and the team follows. They do this at an angle where the referee doesn't see them hitting the other player."

Aomine's fist curled. "Let me get my hands on them - ."

Kuroko stepped on his foot. "Aomine-kun, please calm down."

Akashi put his hand up. "Try to avoid injury at all costs. Most teams that have played them end bruises, but there are some who have walked away with critical injuries. There is no time between now and the Inter High for you all to be injured." He turned to Aomine. "Aomine, do not fight violence with violence." Aomine nodded silently.

"Let's go out there and have fun!" Kise added at the end, cheering as well. The others joined in to various extents (from Midorima's tsundere self to a pumped up Kise).

The Miracles changed into their jerseys, and Akashi announced the starting lineup. He had chosen Takao, Midorima, Aomine, Haizaki, and Murasakibara. Then he sat on the bench, right next to Kuroko and Kise.

"You're not starting today, Akashi-kun?" Kuroko asked.

Akashi gave him a small smile. "I think it would be best to let Takao play today, especially since he just joined us a couple weeks ago and hasn't played in a match with some of the other regulars," he explained.

Kuroko nodded. "I just hope Haizaki keeps his cool today," he said, noticing the small, aggressive movements Haizaki was making on the court.

Akashi frowned, noticing the differences. "Let's hope that he stays in control, Kuroko." Kuroko responded with an okay.

First quarter went smoothly, or as smooth as it could possibly go with a team like Kirisaki Dai Ichi. Momoi prepared several bags of ice for the members to ease the bruising on their bodies. Akashi paid extra attention to Takao and his demeanor; though he liked the guy, he felt that his attraction to Midorima was obvious and distracting to an extent.

"Any members changes?" Midorima asked Akashi, whose forefinger was placed on his chin.

Akashi looked directly at Takao. "I'll play now," he said. "Takao, rest your limbs. I think Hanamiya did a number on you. Kuroko, switch with Haizaki. He's probably ready to blow if we don't sub him out now. Kise, be ready to sub in at any given moment."

Kise saluted, while Kuroko took off his sweatshirt. Akashi grabbed a bottle of water and gulped down a quarter of the water inside of it. Takao collapsed on the bench and stretched out his legs. Momoi offered him an ice pack, which he gladly accepted.

The second quarter began with a man to man mark. Kuroko was an exception to this, of course, since the other team had automatically deemed him as useless to Teiko. The person experiencing a second mark was Aomine, but he quickly escaped from his marks as he did a Formless Shot to score another two points for Teiko. The points were now set at 59-38.

Kuroko caught wind of the ball from one of the other Kirisaki Dai Ichi players, and he intercepted it. Doing his usual tap pass, he passed it to Midorima, who sent it into the hoop moments after. Most of the Kirisaki Dai Ichi players were stunned at how fast the move was played, but one person didn't seem fazed at all. Unfortunately, he was the most dangerous on the Kirisaki Dai Ichi team.

Kirisaki Dai Ichi scored a couple times afterwards before Aomine got one of the balls. Realizing that he was now against three men, he sent the ball to Kuroko, whom he figured would send i to someone who was less protected. He was correct in his thinking. Kuroko passed the ball to Akashi, who then performed an Ankle Break to score for Teiko. Still, the gap remained far apart, and Teiko stayed in the lead.

Half time came. Kuroko sat in the locker room as Akashi pointed out ways that the team could have been better in some of their plays. Himuro Tatsuya was busy handing out honey soaked lemons to all of the players. Kuroko took one and popped it in his mouth, savoring the sweet, bitter taste.

"As for their rough plays," Akashi continued, "I expect that they will amp it up during the second half, so please be on guard. Now, let's go out there and show them who's number one."

"Yes, captain!" everyone replied. Several people made their way out of the locker room after the pep talk, but Kuroko merely laid down on the bench.

Momoi walked over to Kuroko, eyeing a couple of bruises forming on his arms. "Tetsu-kun, are you okay? Do they hurt?" she asked, pressing down on them. Kuroko didn't flinch.

"I'm okay, Momoi-san," Kuroko assured her. "They don't hurt." _Yet_.

Momoi frowned, but she let it go. "Just tell me if it gets worse, Tetsu-kun."

"Of course, Momoi-san."

The buzzer rang for the third quarter to start. Aomine was replaced by Kise, and the five players walked onto the court, ready to take a beating from Kirisaki Dai Ichi. Akashi and Kuroko noticed the stares they were getting, but only one of them figured that they were in for some real trouble.

Kise made some baskets after copying a couple of skills from Kirisaki Dai Ichi, while Murasakibara was blocking the shots coming his way from their team. Kuroko was still passing from Akashi to whoever was open and had a good shot at getting some points.

The quarter dragged on, as it was mainly one sided. Akashi thought it was odd that Kirisaki Dai Ichi wasn't putting forth the effort to win, and so he asked Coach Shirogane for a timeout. Unfortunately, the message never reached him, as Hanamiya elbowed him hard in the ribs.

"No timeout for you right now, shorty," Hanamiya said, then raised two fingers. Akashi knew right away that he was signaling something, but didn't know who was going to get the brunt force of it. Eyes wide open, he looked for Kuroko on the court.

Nothing happened. The ball, safe in Kise's hands, was being dribbled down the court. Kirisaki Dai Ichi tried to block the shot coming, but they failed. That was three points added to Teiko. Akashi was still scanning the court frantically for Kuroko.

"Akashi-kun," Kuroko said, and the red head nearly jumped a mile. "I'm right here."

"Kuroko," Akashi sighed, "As always, your presence is lacking."

"I'm sorry, but isn't that what Akashi-kun wants?" Kuroko asked, referencing a moment when he had been offered a spot in first string.

Akashi shook his head. "At least let me be able to find you when I need to know where you are at all times," he scolded the boy.

"Of course, Akashi-kun."

Kirisaki Dai Ichi scored a couple points before the ball got sent to Akashi. Performing another Ankle Break, he headed in for a basket. Kuroko was right behind him.

The next few moments were almost done in slow motion for Kuroko. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hanamiya raise his index finger, and two people lunging inwards. Kuroko could almost see the future playing right before his eyes, and he opened his mouth to scream his captain's name. Of course, he was too late by then, having reacted a split second slower than Hanamiya and his teammates.

Kuroko could only watch as he saw the number 7 stick out his foot, causing Akashi to stumble over with the ball in hand. Kirisaki's number 10 kicked Akashi in the back, forcing the red head to go down without a fight. The ball rolled out of Akashi's hand and onto the court, revealing a down player.

The referee called for a timeout, and the Generation of Miracles raced towards Akashi in an instant. Akashi's name was called out by the six people. Midorima kneeled down, inspecting the damage done by Kirisaki Dai Ichi.

Aomine glared at Hanamiya. "You provoked this, didn't you?" he accused, pointing a finger at him.

Kise grabbed Aomine by the arm. "Aominecchi, not now!"

Midorima, with the help of Momoi, managed to flip Akashi over so that they could see the blow to his head. The Miracles saw the darkening bruise forming quickly on his forehead. With a grim look, Midorima pulled out the bandages from the pockets of his basketball shorts and wrapped the injury tightly. Then, he proceeded to check his limbs for any breaks that might have occurred.

Momoi took out her cell phone and called for an ambulance, telling the operators on the other line how crucial it was to be at Teiko High School within the next ten minutes. Murasakibara, looking gloomy, assisted Midorima in making a splint. Sometime during the fall, Akashi must have hurt something in his right ankle.

No one noticed Kuroko Tetsuya disappearing from the court after witnessing the incident.

* * *

Akashi woke up to bright lights and a monotonous beeping noise next to him. Unfamiliar with the sound, he tried to shift in the bed to shut off the noise. Assuming it was the alarm clock, Akashi nearly fell out of bed trying to turn it off, but to his surprise, he hit a table instead.

Akashi opened one eye fully. It took a while, considering the amount of the light that filled the room. Realizing that he wasn't at home, tucked in his bed, he opened the other eye. He saw the rainbow haired Miracles surrounding him, especially Midorima with two lucky items in his hand.

"Akashicchi!" Kise cried, leaping forward to hug the redhead. "You're alive!"

Aomine hit Kise smack on the head. "Of course he is, you dummy. He wasn't dead to begin with."

Midorima coughed twice. "Shut up, your loud fools. You're causing a commotion." Then he put a plate of curry rice on Akashi's bedside stable, complete with spoon and all. "Sagittarius's lucky item today is curry rice. It would do you well to at least have some of your lucky food today."

Murasakibara rolled his eyes. "Mido-chin, you made that for Aka-chin, didn't you?"

Midorima's face turned bright red at the suggestion. "No!" he protested. "I believe that fate will reward those who favor it. To ensure that, I must do everything I can so that fate favors me in the end."

Half the people in the room groaned and rolled their eyes, knowing that anything related to Oha Asa will be end becoming a tangent straight from Midorima's mouth. Noticing the worried aura coming off of everyone in the room, Momoi stepped forward.

"How do you feel, Akashi-kun?" she asked, leaning forward to inspect the damage done. Regardless, she already knew how bad the condition was.

Akashi, looking dazed, stared at Momoi briefly before answering. "I feel like I slammed my head into a wall repeatedly, " he answered truthfully. Momoi wasn't surprised, and neither was anyone else in the room. "What happened, Momoi? The last thing I remember is playing against Kirisaki Dai Ichi."

Everyone sighed relief. Murasakibara replied, "Hana-chin gave the signal. Aka-chin was tripped by Furu-chin and hit by Hara-chin." Akashi noticed the grimaces everyone gave at the response.

"I see," Akashi said, pondering over the words. "And?"

Midorima pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "You have a concussion and a sprained ankle," he said bluntly. Kise stared at him, wondering if he could have lightened the blow at all. "Unfortunately, you won't be doing anything physical until you've been given the all clear."

"Doctor Midorima strikes again," Aomine murmured in Kise's ear.

"Oh," Akash said in almost a whisper. Midorima could tell instantly that he was disappointed.

Midorima cleared his throat. "Another thing, you are ordered to stay overnight. Your butler has already given permission to my father, since he is the one overseeing your stay."

At this point, Akashi didn't really care what happened. Something else was more distracting and more important, and it was also pissing him off that he wasn't present.

Akashi looked into Midorima's eyes and asked, "Where is Kuroko?"

Momoi put on her serious look, and with a straight face, she held Akashi's hand. "Kuroko disappeared during the fourth quarter of the practice match. We haven't seen him since." To Akashi, she was about to cry over her longtime crush.

Akashi frowned. There had to be a reason why Kuroko was purposely avoiding him right now, and why he left the practice match early. After all, he hadn't been dismissed from the court. "Any idea where he is?"

Momoi shook her head. "Dai-chan's checked everywhere. He's nowhere to be found," she replied. Leaning into Akashi's ear, she added, "I don't think he wants to be found right now either."

Akashi nodded. "I believe so as well."

Outside the room door (which was closed for privacy purposes, especially since Akashi was the heir to a conglomerate), Kuroko was standing there, listening intently into the conversation. None of the information was exactly new to him, but something else hit him hard. Kuroko wanted to ask about it, but decided that now wasn't the best time. Biting his lip, he walked away without looking back.

On the way home, Kuroko wiped a stray tear from his eye, knowing very well what he was doing.

* * *

Momoi sat down at her desk, reading the contents of today's entry. She figured out that her 26 year old self had given her important information that she felt like was needed in order to save the mystery person from dying. Somehow with this information, she was to change the future.

Momoi put her head down on the desk, letting a few tears run from her eyes. _How can I change the future when I couldn't even save Akashi from being hurt? And I knew it was going to happen, but I still let it happen!_

 _April 20: Teiko will play a practice match with Kirisaki Dai Ichi. Akashi gets a concussion and a sprained ankle from the match, and is forced to go to the hospital and stay overnight. He won't be able to play basketball for a month, which affects the Inter High preliminaries. Kuroko begins to act strangely. Keep an eye on him, Momoi._

Momoi frowned, looking at the letter. She wondered if the letter was hinting anything at who the mystery person was. Was it really Kuroko who was going to die? If so, why? Was there anything she could do to change the future?

At the bottom of the page, there was another line written. However, it was written in fine print, and Momoi found herself squinting to read the words.

 _Beware of the future, but don't shy away from the good._

What the hell did that mean?

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Please leave a review if you can! All reviews are welcomed and help me tremendously, especially if you tell me your reactions to each chapter. I feed off of that.


	3. letter three

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

I will not be using any of the scenes of the future selves, as you might have already noticed. One main reason is that it will give away who the mystery person is, and another is that you will never be confused. This story will continue progressing as it is now. It is by far more natural for me to write, and it eliminates weird scene changes.

Canonically, in Orange, this chapter was supposed to be about joining a club. That part has gone away, since the actual canon shows that Kakeru stays in the soccer club this time around, and in this fic, no one has even left yet, nor has anyone not participated yet. By now, Kise is a fully fledged member of the first string, so we basically pick it up around the second year of Teiko Middle (though translated now to Teiko High). Next chapter will be mostly tied to Orange canon, and the romantic subplot will officially begin then.

If you noticed, there is now a trigger warning and list in the first chapter of the fic. I completely forgot about including a list, especially after reading all the tags for this on Archive of Our Own (yes, I cross-posted over there too). By now, the list is mostly finalized, unless there is another major character that I need to add for a specific scene. You can view the full list in the first chapter, and I will be enclosing exactly which disorders are mentioned in many chapters. Also, if I depict any of them wrong, please tell me as soon as possible so I can make the necessary changes. I'd like this to be as realistic as possible (then again, KnB wasn't realistic in terms of physics, but we still love it anyways).

*Psychological Condition: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

* * *

 **MAY 1**

A couple weeks after the incident, Kuroko finally showed up to practice again. Momoi, ecstatic over his presence (even though it was a lot less than we last saw him), tackled him to the ground in hugs and tears. Kise followed after her and locked Kuroko in a tight hug. Aomine had to butt Kise out to get a hug from his shadow, along with complaining to him how basketball wasn't the same without him. Kuroko cracked a tiny smile at that.

"Aomine-kun, Kise-kun, Momoi-san, it's good to see you again," Kuroko bowed.

Midorima flicked the teal haired kid. "Idiot. Don't leave us hanging," he reprimanded, though his words were not laced with as much scolding as he usually does with Murasakibara. Kuroko could tell that inside, he was happy that he showed back up to practice.

Murasakibara put his giant hand on Kuroko's head and ruffled his hair. "Kuro-chin came back," he said, "I was going to crush you if you didn't come back."

Kuroko bowed. "I'm sorry, Murasakibara-kun."

Momoi, now watching the Generation of Miracles (minus Akashi), from the sideline, noticed the fading presence of the shadow. She took note of how Kuroko was deliberately avoiding a certain topic, and as much as he loves basketball, he sure did not look like he wanted to be there right now. Momoi frowned, wondering if it was related to the present.

She walked over to the Miracles's bench (yes, they had their own bench to themselves since they were all regulars and most of them were starters), where Akashi was sitting. He was observing everyone, and Momoi saw the line of concentration directed at Kuroko. A hint of sadness crossed Akashi's eyes, but it only remained there for a second, and then he went back to being the stoic Akashi everyone knew.

"Akashi-kun, do you have the tape of the last practice match?" she asked.

Akashi nodded. "Yes, I do. Why do you ask?" he asked, worry etching his face.

"It's nothing important," Momoi lied. Honestly, this was a first for her, but things had to start somewhere, right? Plus, she didn't want to reveal the underlying text beneath her words, and then it would just become a mess. "I think Haizaki copied a move, but it felt rhythmically different than usual. It's not like his usual copies," she covered.

Akashi furrowed his brows, trying to find the lie in her words. In the end, he bought the story. He reached into his basketball bag and took out the video. "I already watched the entire video, so there's no need to give it back to me," he said as he handed over the videotape. "I do have a couple comments to make, but I'm not sure if you have already addressed them."

"What comments?" Momoi asked. Depending on the quarter the mistakes were in, Momoi might have already said something about it. However, Momoi's intuition said that all the mistakes were made during the fourth quarter due to the lack of an experienced point guard, and those were the comments that were going to be made.

"Aomine stopped coordinating with the team at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Quite honestly, he almost looks like a monster in that state," Akashi began, and Momoi gulped. She was right on the money. "Murasakibara looks like the devil, and the atmosphere looks tense. Midorima looks quite calm, but his movements are quite irregular from his normal pattern. Kise looks like he's going to die at any given moment. Finally, Takao has almost no experience, which shows particularly when he subs for me."

Momoi sighed. "Let's try putting Takao in several matches then, so that he can improve rhythm with the team. Actually, I think Takao is best suited to go along with Midorima. His hawk eye allows him to see the entire court, and he can make accurate passes to Midorima. Not to mention that he's tolerant of the kid."

Akashi nodded. "I agree. They can be partners, like Aomine and Kuroko."

"Let's have them start now," Momoi said. She looked up and called over Midorima and Takao. "Midorin! Takao! Over here!" she waved.

Midorima reached the Miracle bench first. "Is it important, Momoi?" he asked, basketball in his hand.

"Of course, Midorin!" Momoi exclaimed. Takao showed up right next to her, and Momoi gestured to him. "We think that Takao would be a good match for you on the court, so we want you two to practice together from now on."

Akashi didn't miss the reddening on Takao's face when Momoi announced this.

Midorima nearly denied this claim, but Momoi continued, "You two would be a good pair to coordinate passes and shots with, especially in the coming weeks. The Inter High preliminaries begin next week, and Takao will be our point guard. It'll be good exercise for you two to get into rhythm with each other so that we don't fall behind so soon."

Takao grinned. "Okay!"

Akashi raised a hand to speak. "Takao, you will also be staying behind for twenty minutes every day to improve your point guard skills. Your hawk eye is very handy and is a powerful weapon on the court, but only if you utilize it to the fullest." Takao nodded, agreeing to the terms.

Momoi then pushed them back on the court, wishing them good luck. Internally, she hoped that they would get along okay and that they would be in good condition for the beginning of the Inter High preliminaries next week.

Akashi looked at Momoi. "When are you going to scout out our first school?"

Momoi shrugged. "Tomorrow, maybe. It's Shinkyo Academy."

Akashi smiled. "At least you know the school we will be up against."

Momoi smiled along with him. "Of course."

Momoi looked back over at Kuroko and Aomine. Kuroko was making passes to Aomine from every direction possible, and Aomine was stealing the ball and making all kinds of shots. Kise was in on the action too, and he was responsible for guarding Aomine and blocking shots. It was clear to Momoi that he was failing miserably.

From a distance, Momoi noticed how weary Kuroko was looking. The sweat was dripping from his face onto the gym floor, and to top it off, his face was getting paler by the minute. Momoi grabbed one of the water bottles from the sideline and ran over to him, eager to give water to her crush.

"Tetsu-kun!" she called out, skipping the entire way to Kuroko. "I brought water!" Kuroko graciously accepted the water and thanked Momoi for her efforts.

Aomine scowled. "Oi Satsuki, where's my water?"

Momoi pointed to the sideline. "Over there," she replied innocently.

He gaped at his childhood friend. "You didn't get me water?" Aomine asked, hurt by her actions. Momoi simply pointed to the sidelines and told him to get his own water, talking about how Tetsu-kun is more important sometimes. Aomine glared daggers at her until he saw the delighted look on Kuroko's face. Then he calmed down and got his own water.

"Thank you, Momoi-san," Kuroko thanked after Aomine left. Momoi hugged him around the waist and said something about never letting go of him. She eventually let go, however, when Midorima swung by to tell them to practice and not run their mouths. Momoi sulked at his words, but left them to their own devices.

She went back to the Miracles's bench and sat down next to Akashi. From the sidelines, they continued to observe and measure the growth of each individual player. Coach Shirogane was busy observing the third string today, trying to help them improve somewhat within the upcoming months. After all, chances to get promoted were coming up soon.

Akashi looked at hs phone and frowned. Momoi leaned over, looking at the master calendar Akashi had made for the basketball team. It listed the extra practice dates, games to attend, and training camps that they would be making soon. She noticed that under tomorrow's date was a practice match for the second string.

"Shall we send Mukkun and Himuro-kun?" Momoi planned. Akashi nodded, agreeing to the setup. The opposing team had a decent center player, so Murasakibara could at least have some fun tomorrow.

Momoi gathered the two players to talk to them about the match they'd be playing in tomorrow. Teiko was not hosting the match either, so Murasakibara and Himuro would have to get on the train to go to Josei High to play in the match. Luckily, they both readily agreed, though Murasakibara initially complained about how much work it was. Akashi promised maiubo for him if they won.

Practice ended an hour later, and for a good duration of the last hour, Akashi and Momoi sat in silence. The only sounds they heard other than the basketball and the players on the court were the sounds of a pen scribbling on a clipboard and the soft hum coming from Akashi's mouth. Momoi would devise a new training menu for tomorrow's practice in order to get everyone geared up for the Inter High.

The first string players dumped the basketballs back into the bucket and headed into the locker room to change and shower. Kuroko had Kise and the new first string players stay behind for clean up duties. Kise, though he was on the first string longer than the other three, still had to help since he was new to the club overall.

"Kuroko, a word if you will," Akashi said right before Kuroko disappeared into the locker room.

Kuroko stopped in his tracks, thoughts flooding his mind. He had a vague idea of what he was being summoned for, and he had no desire to look back on those events. Talking to his captain wasn't exactly easy either, though he had a knack for defying him whenever he got the chance. Blinking, he turned around to look at the red head, who was staring at him.

"Akashi-kun, please be quick. I need to go babysit my sister," Kuroko requested.

This made Akashi do a double take. Kuroko never once voiced a complaint or a time restraint on anything. Even if he was going to be late to something, he would simply forget about it and be late to the next thing on his list. Akashi frowned; something odd was definitely going on. "Never mind. Go home and watch your sister, and give her my regards as well," he dismissed.

Kuroko bowed. "Of course, Akashi-kun. Luna would be delighted to hear from you."

Nodding, Akashi watched Kuroko go into the locker room. Midorima walked out of the locker room at the same moment and headed in his direction.

"Kuroko is acting strange, nanodayo," Midorima said, offering up the crutches to Akashi. "In fact, I don't recall him having a sister at all."

Akashi gratefully accepted them and hopped up from the bench. "I don't remember him talking about a sister before either. What should I do about it, Midorima?" he asked, very well knowing the answer. Midorima knew that too.

"Whatever it takes," Midorima replied, helping Akashi out of the gym. "Although from a doctoral standpoint, I would recommend that you leave it alone until a sufficient amount of time has passed," he added. "It may be too early to confront him now, nanodayo."

Akashi factored Midorima's thoughts into his plan. "Then, I suppose Kise would do fine as bait."

"Fishing, nanodayo?" Midorima asked, raising an eyebrow.

Akashi's sly smile answered any questions he had in his brain. "Yes, fishing."

* * *

Kuroko walked home with Momoi that night, though it was a walk done in silence. Momoi was only following him home, making sure that he actually went home and didn't do something stupid along the way. Kuroko didn't mind; in fact, he was grateful that someone was walking with him.

When they got close to his house, Momoi noticed the size steps Kuroko was taking. Normally, he'd be taking much smaller steps, but today, they were huge. She wondered if Kuroko didn't want to be around her. "Hey, Tetsu-kun."

"Yes?" he asked, not stopping his pace. However, he did start slowing down to match Momoi's.

"How are you feeling?"

The moment Momoi asked, Kuroko stopped in his tracks and turned to face his manager. Momoi stopped as well, looking at his powder blue eyes. Behind the eyes, she could tell, was a whole lot of pain. He looked like he was going to cry at some point. Momoi guessed he would do that at home, away from the eyesight of the Generation of Miracles.

Kuroko answered. "I'm feeling fine, Momoi-san. How are you?" He didn't miss a beat.

Momoi ignored the question directed at her. "Tetsu-kun, that's not what I meant," she said softly. Her hand touched the sleeve of his blazer. "If there's anything wrong, please tell me or one of the others."

"There's nothing wrong, Momoi-san," he repeated.

Momoi cocked her head to the side. "Then why didn't you go to practice for the past two weeks?" she asked.

"I wasn't feeling well," was all he said.

Momoi frowned. She wasn't buying the obvious lie. She swore she saw a tear roll down his cheek when he said it, and she knew that he had been showing up to class for the past week and a half. "Tetsu-kun," she whispered. "Please tell me what's wrong." Kuroko didn't answer.

Somehow, in the next five minutes, they made their way to Kuroko's house. Kuroko let her inside and announced that he was home. Momoi noticed that no one responded to it. Looking at him, she narrowed her eyes. "You lied to Akashi-kun, didn't you?"

Kuroko led her into his bedroom, which was quite small and minimalistic for Momoi's taste. However, it was very neat and tidy, like she had expected from him. There were even a couple of basketball posters on the walls and a basketball underneath his desk. Momoi flopped on the bed and sniffed the pillow. It did smell like him.

Kuroko came back into the room with tea and snacks. He offered them to Momoi, who graciously accepted. He sat in the rolling chair right next to his desk and put his bag down. Taking in a deep breath, he looked at Momoi. "To answer your question, I did lie to Akashi-kun. Please do not tell him that I did, though. He may already have his suspicions."

Momoi nodded, keeping the secret safe with her. Kuroko sipped his tea, then opened the first drawer to his desk. She noticed the pill bottles hidden in there, and wide eyed, she looked at Kuroko. He wasn't doing drugs, was he?

"Those are not drugs, Momoi-san," he said, as if he could read her mind. "I am not a drug addict."

Momoi nodded and picked up one of the bottles. The label was all she needed to read. "Does this explain why you didn't go to school for days after the incident, and why you adamantly refused to go to practice as well?"

"Yes," Kuroko replied quietly.

She threw herself on Kuroko, embracing him tightly in a hug. "Tetsu-kun," she said, tears dripping from her eyes. "You have to tell us these things, or we won't know about it. We've been so worried about you."

Kuroko put his arms around her waist, hugging her as well. "I'm sorry, Momoi-san," he apologized.

"You don't have to go to practice if you don't want to," Momoi said. "Is it hard seeing Akashi-kun?" she asked hesitantly, as if it were a forbidden question.

Kuroko flinched at the question, and Momoi knew she hit something she shouldn't have. "Yes," he replied almost a minute later. "Whenever someone mentions his name or the Generation of Miracles, I can see him falling, and it's my fault that he's like this."

Momoi almost wanted to punch him in the gut. Trying to comfort him, she said, "It's not your fault, Tetsu-kun. No one blames you for it."

"But it is, Momoi-san. I didn't react fast enough after Hanamiya-kun when he gave the signal. I saw the future happen a split second before it did, because of the Quasi Emperor Eye." By now, Kuroko was whimpering, trying to hold back the tears. Momoi was angry that he kept this to himself, the blame. It was such a Kuroko thing to do, yet Momoi hadn't seen it. The letter had hinted at it too.

Slowly, Momoi let go of Kuroko, but placed her hands on his shoulders. Kuroko was forced to look at her with his glistening eyes. Momoi's eyes were strong and commanding, not like Akashi's, but like herself. "Tetsu-kun, listen to me carefully. What happened wasn't anyone's fault but Kirisaki Dai Ichi's. You couldn't possibly have done anything about it. No one blames you for it, not even Akashi-kun. He misses being around you, actually. Please, forgive yourself, because it's not your fault it happened, and come back to us soon. We need our phantom sixth man." Kuroko nodded slowly. In a softer, more kinder tone, Momoi continued, "We're worried about you, Tetsu-kun."

Kuroko sat there, motionless. Momoi grabbed a tissue off his desk and wiped the tears streaming down his face. She dabbed at the droplets falling from his eyes. There was absolute silence between them for minutes on end. Honestly, Momoi thought it was a little awkward.

"Akashi-kun doesn't blame me?" Kuroko asked, and Momoi was getting closer to her breaking level.

"Of course not," she replied immediately, shaking her head. "Akashi-kun has been dying to talk to you for a while now, since you disappeared during the match and didn't come back. Honestly, he blames _himself_ for what happened, even though he knows it was on purpose. You two are so stupid sometimes, just like Dai-chan."

Kuroko stopped crying to look at Momoi. "Momoi-san, could you repeat that please?"

Momoi blinked. "You two - " she started, but seeing the shake of Kuroko's head, she tried again. "Akashi-kun blames himself for the incident?" Kuroko nodded. "He does, Tetsu-kun. Actually, I wasn't supposed to tell you that, but let's keep that our little secret." Momoi winked, and Kuroko agreed.

"Why does Akashi-kun blame himself?" Kuroko asked out of curiosity.

Momoi thought about it for a second. "I think he saw the signal from Hanamiya as well, but didn't think that he'd be the target of his actions. I believe he was about to call your name when Furuhashi-kun knocked him down."

Kuroko stared at her, wide eyed. "Akashi-kun was going to call my name? Why?"

Momoi giggled. "Silly Tetsu-kun. It's our duty as friends to protect each other. Akashi-kun must have sensed that you might be in danger, so he tried to warn you. This is the first that he's been wrong."

The conversation ended there, and Kuroko escorted the pink haired girl outside of his house. He wished her a good night, and Momoi did the same. He stood outside, waving to her as she disappeared in the opposite direction that they had came to his place. When she had left his sight entirely, Kuroko walked back inside and locked the door tightly.

He set the empty plate and teacups in the sink and washed them down neatly. After doing that, he stepped inside of the shower and rinsed himself down to the point where he might have drowned if the tub was a pool. He spent so long in there that his fingers were numbing and shrivelling up like dried cranberries. Most of his shower time was occupied with just him standing there, thinking about everything Momoi has told him, and what happened over the last couple weeks.

When he has had enough of his personal shower time, he dried himself off and put on his pajamas. A glass of water in his hand, he popped a couple of Zoloft pills in his mouth, swallowing them down with the water. Then, he trudged into the bed. Pulling a blanket around his tiny, skinny self, he went to sleep, forgetting about the homework he had to do. Today had taken most of the life out of him, and all he wanted to do now was sleep the pain away.

* * *

Momoi had a very special notebook she was using to track everyone (the Miracles) in order to figure out who the mystery dead person was. Her letter had hinted that each Miracle had their own separate, private problems that they didn't want to discuss with anyone else. Therefore, the notebook was useful in keeping everyone's problems straight.

Too bad the letter hadn't hinted that they would be psychological problems. Momoi sighed to herself, realizing that this would become a mess.

She opened up the notebook and wrote down Kuroko Tetsuya's name and the exact problems she had noticed, along with what Kuroko had supplied to her. She was familiar with the drug Zoloft, and how it was supposed to help those with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and their symptoms.

However, Momoi stopped for a second, wondering if that was the only thing he was dealing with. PTSD is normally accompanied with a second or third issue, and the two that popped up in her mind were likely to also affect Kuroko as well. Wondering about the possibility, she put the words depression and anxiety by his name.

She closed the notebook, having enough for the day. Next to the notebook was the envelope, and Momoi opened up the letter, finding today and tomorrow's date.

 _May 1: Kuroko shows up to practice again, but he seems out of it. Akashi tries to talk to him, but he lies to him about babysitting his sister. You will follow him home, and learn about what happened mentally after Akashi is sent to the hospital._

 _May 2: Kuroko doesn't go to practice, but he's opening up a little more to you during lunch hour._

Momoi was shocked at how little her future self had written in for tomorrow, but inside, she was happy that Kuroko would begin to talk more. It was a sign that he was healing, right? Perhaps he really had taken her words to heart.

Relieved, Momoi did her homework quickly and went to bed, exhausted about the day's events.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

This might sound like a dumb question, but who do you think is the mystery dead person? Leave a review below, they help me so much!


	4. letter four

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

I think I wrote this about a week in advance because somehow, this chapter flowed really nicely with my brain. Wish I could say the same for chapter 5. Anyways, this chapter doesn't really follow Orange canon, in case you were wondering (although there is one major Orange parallel in this chapter). Chapter 4 and 5 of the Orange manga will end up squeezed into chapter 5. I hope you guys aren't disappointed in waiting another week for cute, fluffy, romantic ships. However, this chapter does include another major plot point (or six, who knows?). Those of you who are curious as to when the next letter is reveal - chapter 8 is probably the answer. 75% sure right now. We'll see where this fic takes me.

In terms of feedback, you guys make me blush so much in class (because I actually write and read/answer comments during the school day)! That is such a good thing in my life, and I love you all for making me feel this way! Keep up the fantastic work! If you haven't noticed, I'm doing polls now to keep up with the "who do I think is dead" concept. This is an incredible important poll to answer because it actually helps drive where the fic goes (although it lead to the same ending). Please answer the poll - it's located on my profile. If you don't want to log in to answer it, just leave a review below with your answer. However, if you answer the poll, you can see the result. That way, you know what your peers are thinking. Of course, they shouldn't be affecting your response.

*Psychological Conditions: Anxiety, Hints of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

* * *

 **MAY 5**

Much to the Generation of Miracles's shock, Akashi Seijuro had been asked out by one of the girls in his class, Araki Masako, and accepted her offer. The Miracles knew their fearless redhead captain to turn down many offers of romantic relationships, so this came as a surprise for them. Nonetheless, they were congratulatory about it.

"Congratulations, Akashicchi!" Kise went in for a hug, but Akashi avoided it at the last possible second. Kise pouted, whining about how much his captain didn't care about him.

"Thank you, Kise," Akashi said, ignoring his whines. "But please don't try to hug me. It's uncomfortable."

Kise burst out in fake tears, while Aomine tried to comfort him. He was failing miserably, though. Momoi had to insult Aomine in order for him to stop trying. Somehow, Kise collected himself as soon as he noticed Kuroko walking by the first string gymnasium. He hadn't attended practice that day either, and Kise hasn't seen him in weeks.

"Kurokocchi!" he squealed, running towards him.

Kuroko, shocked at how he noticed him so easily, took off in a run, trying to avoid the Miracles. Momoi had kept track of the teal haired kid's attendance, and so far, he hasn't shown up again to the gym. She supposed he wasn't ready yet, and she wasn't going to push him to attend practice. However, he had to come back soon, the Inter High preliminaries were beginning Monday.

"Ki-kun!" Momoi called out. "I have a new brand of perfume I'd like you to sniff test for me!" The goal? To distract him from Kuroko so that she could talk to him later in private.

Luckily, the aversion reached Kise and he came straight back into the gym. Momoi pulled out the bottle and extended it to him. The blonde was more than happy to sniff the new scent, and he was absolutely in love with it.

"Momoicchi, this smells fantastic! Is it the new bottle they came out with?" he asked.

He was about to spray the perfume all over himself when Midorima scolded him and told him to go outside if he was going to do that. Kise was more than happy to go outside, and by now, Kuroko will have left the school. All would be okay.

Kise bounded back into the gym, smelling like the cherry blossoms blooming last month. Momoi thought the scent reminded her of home (Japan was home, after all). He gave her the bottle back, and Momoi tucked it away in her school bag. Murasakibara complained about how it didn't smell like food, and therefore he disliked it. Midorima complained about his addiction to food, and the two ended up bickering.

"Now that practice is over, let's go celebrate Akashicchi's new relationship!" Kise announced, dragging Aomine already by the forearm. Aomine grunted and protested, but Kise didn't let go of his grasp. Momoi agreed readily with Murasakibara.

Midorima sighed heavily. "I suppose I will come as well, since you all need a babysitter."

"Pft, that's tsundere talk for 'I wanna come too'," Aomine translated for everyone else. Midorima had to hide the redness on his face. Akashi seemed to be debating the pros and cons of coming with them, but he couldn't deny them, since it was about him after all.

"I don't want to walk there, Satsuki," Aomine complained. "It's raining outside."

Momoi glanced out of the window in the locker room. "That's true, Dai-chan. I guess we'll have to improvise."

Since Akashi's limousine ride was also here, he offered it up to the Miracles as a ride somewhere to celebrate. Aomine liked this idea, and the other Miracles agreed. Kise volunteered one of his favorite restaurants to celebrate, since he was a longtime regular there and hasn't been there in a couple weeks. The restaurant wasn't expensive either, and everyone seemed okay with the idea of going there. After all, their food was tasty enough, even for Akashi.

Everyone departed the gym, and Midorima locked it up with the key. Coach Shirogane, luckily, was still in the area, talking to another coach, so Midorima gave the key back to him. Then, he rejoined the Miracles, who were waiting inside of the limousine already.

"Midorin, hurry up!" Momoi yelled out of the window.

Midorima picked up the pace, and carefully got into the limo, making sure that he didn't track too much dirt inside. Aomine pointed out that he didn't have to be careful about tracking mud inside, but Midorima argued that since it was a high class vehicle, he had to at least be respectful and make sure he tracked in the least amount of dirt inside. Akashi glared at both of them, almost as if he was telling both of them to shut up. They both caught the aura of an angry redhead sitting nearby, and they both zipped their lips immediately.

Momoi stared at her phone constantly throughout the entire trip. Unknown to the other Miracles, she and Kuroko were talking frequently through text messages. Kuroko had trusted Momoi, and was somewhat comfortable with telling her what was going on lately. Momoi had insisted that if wasn't feeling up to it, he didn't have to talk to her at all. However, Kuroko talked to her anyways, and it made Momoi happy to hear and see that he was coping.

 _Kuroko: Today went well. My therapist wants me to start going back to practice, but I'm afraid._

 _Momoi: Afraid of what?_

 _Kuroko: It happening again, or a flashback happening._

 _Momoi: You never know until you come. Akashi-kun will appreciate your presence regardless, and so will the rest of us._

 _Kuroko: That is true, Momoi-san. I suppose I can try to come Monday and see what happens._

 _Momoi: You don't have to play if you don't want to._

 _Kuroko: Actually, I've been itching to play lately. I miss the feeling of a basketball on my hands. It's the outcome that worries me._

 _Momoi: You can do it, Tetsu-kun. We're here, after all._

 _Kuroko: Thank you, Momoi-san._

Momoi shut her phone and stuck it back in her school bag. A smile was creeping its way on her face, but unbeknownst to her, Murasakibara was watching her. It almost felt like she was being watched, but in a stalker-like way. It felt creepy and made someone want to run away. But Momoi knew better.

"Sacchin, who are you texting?" Murasakibara asked curiously. "Why is it making you smile?"

Now everyone's attention was on Momoi. Though many things can make the girl smile wide (and the list is long), the source wasn't usually through a phone.

Forgetting about whatever unsaid secret pact she had with Kuroko about not telling the Miracles anything about their text messages, she jabbered, "Tetsu-kun's coming back to practice Monday!"

"Eh? Kurokocchi's coming back to practice Monday?" Kise asked, surprised. "I'm glad he didn't quit, but what's with the long absence?" A couple nods were earned in Kise's direction. The Miracles wanted to know, even Midorima and his tsundere self. Momoi noticed Akashi's eyes, which were more rounder than usual. Yup, he's interested as well.

There was a long silence after Kise's question. Momoi didn't know how she could properly respond to it. Of course, she didn't want to break any promises she made with Kuroko; his problems were his story to tell, not hers. However, she could not leave Kise in the dust, nor could she lie.

Jabbing her two index fingers together like a normal nervous person would do when they were about to tell a white lie, she said, "How do I put it? Tetsu-kun hasn't been feeling well lately, so I told him not to show up until he feels better."

Some of the Generation of Miracles did not buy the story because they had all seen Kuroko during school at some point over the last couple weeks. "But Tetsu's been going to school," Aomine mentioned. "So he's not contagious or anything."

"In fact, there are other illnesses that are not contagious, yet they would keep you from doing activities for a period of time, nanodayo," Midorima stated. "It is just a matter of looking into what he might have."

"Should we ask Kuro-chin what he's sick with?" Murasakibara asked.

"No," Aomine said out flatly. "Tetsu will be suspicious."

"What is this, a secret promise that we all share and can't tell others?" Kise asked. Midorima wanted to hit him in the head for that poor analogy, but refrained.

"Aomine is correct in his thinking," Akashi inputted. "It sounds like he only contacted Momoi when he said that he would be away from practice. Therefore, he is hiding something from us that we do not know about." He looked at Momoi. "Are we allowed to know the exact reason of why he was away from practice for an extended period of time?"

Momoi shook her head. "I promised that I wouldn't say. Plus, it's Tetsu-kun's story, not mine."

Bells rang in Midorima's ear. Just from those words, he deduced what Kuroko might be suffering from, and considering the recent events, he believed it to be a real possibility. However, he had no evidence to support his theory, so he couldn't confirm his suspicions.

"Akashi-sama and company, we have arrived," the chauffeur announced. The Miracles waddled out of the limousine slowly, though Aomine had half a mind to push some of them out of the vehicle without a care for the consequences. "Have a good meal, sirs."

"Thank you, Mayuzumi-san," Akashi said to his chauffeur, bowing. "I will be in contact soon for pickup." Mayuzumi nodded and drove away from the restaurant.

The restaurant, called Maji Burger, turned out to be a fast food chain. It was also the most acceptable fast food chain for Midorima and Akashi, having grown up in a well off household. The food was decent and the service was excellent. It was ideal in a situation like this, when they had no reservations and they wanted their food instantly.

Murasakibara pulled into one of the booths, and the others slid in. All six of them fit into one big booth in the back of the restaurant. Kise collected everyone's money and orders, since he was designated to do so because he chose the place, and disappeared to go order the food and drinks. It relieved everyone of an annoying blonde for a while too.

Akashi, on the outside of the Miracles, observed his surroundings. Though he had been in this restaurant before, something about the place was eerie to him. Most of the paintings were in the same place as they were last time, and the posters haven't been placed in an awkward angle or anything. One of the posters was crooked, and he knew Midorima would be ticked off by that. However, he couldn't do much about it. Sure enough, Midorima was glaring intently at the opposite side of the restaurant, trying to ignore the crooked poster. Akashi could tell that he wasn't succeeding. On his direct right, however, sat a certain someone, and the two of them locked eyes.

Kuroko's powder blue eyes were staring right into Akashi's pure red ones, but the former's eyes were as wide as saucers. Anxiety rippled through the tealnette's body over the fact that he wasn't prepared to talk to him at all, the fact that he had actually run into his teammates at Maji Burger, and other things related to them.

"Kuroko, it's good to see you again," Akashi said, though the wording made it seem like they were old friends rather than current ones. "What have you been up to?"

Kuroko felt like crying over the kind smile Akashi was giving him. It almost felt like there had been no time between the last time they had spoken to each other. "It's good to see you too, Akashi-kun," he replied, hoping that no one could hear the odd jump in his voice, nor could anyone see him twitching in his seat. His mind was telling him to leave, to run, but instead, Kuroko felt like he was frozen there, unable to move except for the twitching that wouldn't stop. "I have been babysitting a lot lately."

Akashi recognized the lie right away, especially since Momoi had given them a hint on why he hasn't shown up to practice lately. However, noticing the higher pitches in his voice, Akashi decided to leave the other matter for a different time. "Oh? I thought you said before that you were an only child."

Kuroko blinked, not remembering that he had once told Akashi that small detail. That meant that Akashi knew he had been lying to him, and he would eventually be punished for committing that one sin. His mind was spinning in all different directions, unsure of what to do next. His legs felt like jelly and wouldn't budge anywhere, while his mind was urging him to run now, before it was too late. Mentally, Kuroko cursed himself for his inability to do anything. Was his only option now to tell him a half truth?

However, things like the pregnant pause didn't escape Akashi's notice easily. Perceptive in many areas, he picked up on the pitch change and now the silence. Kuroko didn't look like he was visibly shaking, but Akashi noted his pale, white face and how he hasn't moved an inch.

Midorima stood up almost too quickly for his own liking, and he announced that Kise was having some troubles with the food up in the line. Everyone's attention was redirected to Kise, who was indeed struggling to carry everyone's food and drinks back to the table. Either feeling overly nice and helping Kise, or to get away from the awkward environment Akashi might have caused, Aomine, Momoi, and Murasakibara rushed to help Kise. Akashi and Midorima were left, but Midorima whispered to him that he'd handle the rest. Nodding silently, Akashi allowed him and went to help Kise.

It was a good thing that Midorima had been raised with medical texts decorating his living space, so medical knowledge had somehow seeped into his brain. Another bonus was him becoming a doctor in the future, so the medical texts were resourceful and enjoyable to a certain degree. He knew the signs of anxiety, and he had a vague idea of the treatment.

Very quietly, he whispered to Kuroko slowly, "It's Midorima Shintaro. Kuroko, you need to listen to me. Can you hear me? Just nod your head for yes." Kuroko jerked a head nod. "Count in your head with me. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten."

Kuroko struggled to count with him. In his mind were raging thoughts about odder things, and he couldn't focus in the slightest. However, Midorima kept counting, and he could hear a pulse in his counting. It was slow and steady, and somehow, it was all he could concentrate on.

Wasn't this exactly what his therapist had said about anxiety attacks? Focus on something?

"You're doing good, Kuroko," Midorima said. "Can I touch you?" he asked hesitantly. Though it wasn't something he was fond of doing, he would endure it for Kuroko's sake. Kuroko nodded. "Thank you. We are going to go outside, is that okay with you?" Kuroko nodded again. "I am going to pick you up and take you outside."

Kuroko somehow found it odd yet relaxing that Midorima was saying his every action as he performed them. As his muscular hands were secured around his waist, he carried Kuroko outside. Kuroko could almost smell the fresh night air, but somehow outside, breathing was easier. Outside didn't feel stuffy, but it didn't feel stuffy until he locked eyes with Akashi.

"Kuroko," Midorima said, interrupting his thoughts. "Do you feel better now?" Kuroko nodded, not trusting himself to speak yet. "Keep counting, and try to count out loud, nanodayo."

Five minutes ticked by until Kuroko began to say his numbers out loud. Midorima noticed how high the number was (291), but his breathing was much more even across the board. His facial complexion was healthier as well.

"I'm sorry, Midorima-kun, for bothering you," Kuroko apologized minutes later. "Your food is getting cold now."

"It's doesn't matter," Midorima said, "I wasn't in the mood for greasy burgers."

There was a bit of silence before Kuroko kept the conversation going. "I only order vanilla milkshakes here. Their milkshakes are wonderful."

Midorima arched an eyebrow. He was fully aware of Kuroko's obsession with vanilla milkshakes, and it was what his meals consisted of sometimes. Of course he'd only order milkshakes. "Such a thing cannot be healthy if taken five times a week."

Kuroko pouted. "Midorima-kun, you are intelligent, but sometimes, you can be dumb."

Midorima stared at him, horrified at what he just said. "Huh?" he sputtered.

The door behind him opened, revealing the other Miracles. Momoi was leading the pack, carrying a bag of food and a takeout cup with a vanilla milkshake inside. "Midorin, Tetsu-kun, I brought your food and drink." She handed it to them, which they graciously accepted.

"Thank you, Momoi-san," he said. "I am sorry to have bothered you about it."

Momoi waved it off. "It's okay, Tetsu-kun," she whispered in his ear. "You can tell them. All they know is that you've been skipping because of other issues, but they've been formulated their own theories. Please, Tetsu-kun." Kuroko could see her pleading almost.

"Sacchin, hurry up," Murasakibara whined. "I want Kuro-chin time too." Momoi gave him a sulky look, but she moved on to Akashi.

Murasakibara walked closer to Kuroko, offering him some sweets to munch on. Kuroko accepted them as well, thanking him for his kindness. Aomine and Kise then surrounded Kuroko with their presence, talking about basketball and the Japanese National Team. Kuroko, slightly interested, listened in on their bickering about the better forwards.

"As a matter of fact, you both are stupid fools," Midorima interrupted them. "Aida Kagetora is obviously the best."

Now there was just complete bickering between the three of them. As much as Akashi would have liked to shut them up all, he noticed Kuroko's face, happy to be around them and no longer panicked. A sudden thought hit Akashi, and at that moment, he decided to head home in the limousine.

The Generation of Miracles bid farewell to each other, as they went their separate ways to go home for the night.

* * *

Akashi's date the next day apparently went very well, for on Monday, the Miracles were hearing about romantic stuff from the fangirls. Araki Masako was spreading rumors about their successful fate, and the girls were fawning over their love, saying how great of a couple they were. Aomine was pretty sure some of them were harboring jealous feelings towards them, but couldn't show them because of their status.

Right now, Aomine was strutting the hallways with Kise by his side. The bell for the first class hasn't rung yet, which meant that girls were flocking to them. Damn that Kise. Aomine wanted a decent chat with him without the annoying fangirls of his.

"Oi, Kise, are you paying attention?" Aomine asked, waving a hand in front of his face. As much as Kise paid attentions to his fans, Aomine wished that the blonde would pay him some attention too.

"Yeah, Aominecchi," Kise said. Looking at all the starry eyed girls, he winked, "Hey ladies, I have to go take care of some private business. Mind waiting until a later time?" The girls shook their heads and scurried off to a classroom to hang out until first period.

Aomine led them both onto the staircase and he leaned against the window. Staring out of the window, he spoke of his fears to Kise. "Kise, what do you think of Tetsu?" he asked, not looking at him.

Kise cocked his head to the right, pondering over why Aomine has asked such a question. Honestly, the events of Friday had baffled him. "Kurokocchi's my best friend and instructor," he replied. "Aominecchi, are you worried over him?" he asked in a quiet, sad tone.

Aomine flinched, and Kise took that as a sign that he was, indeed, worried. "Tetsu's been acting weird for a while. I can't have my partner disappearing every day."

Kise stood next to Aomine, peering out the window. He saw many students passing through the gate, most of them in their normal friend clumps. Others were bringing their bicycles through and locking them up at the bike rack. Nothing special was going on outside. "Kurokocchi's coming back to practice today, Aominecchi. Maybe it'll be okay now."

"Sure," Aomine said, trying to dispel the uneasy feeling in him. "Kise, don't you feel like there's something wrong somewhere?"

Kise grunted. "Yeah. It frustrates me that I don't know what's irritating me," he answered. "I feel like it began with the Kirisaki Dai Ichi match, and things ended up going downwards." Aomine nodded silently, still staring outside when the bell finally rang for class.

* * *

The final bell rang, signaling the end of another long school day. Students, boys and girls alike, filled the once empty halls as they hurried down to the locker room to switch shoes and go home. Other people were hanging around in their classrooms, waiting for the hallways to clear before they made their move. Another group of people headed to their respective clubs for their meetings.

Momoi, Akashi, and Midorima headed to the gym together. Since they shared a class together, they figured that it was easier and more comfortable if they walked to the gym as a group. Sometimes, the other Miracles would join them if they weren't delayed or rushed ahead.

Inside the gym, the three of them found Aomine already lying on the ground, tuckered out from classes that day. Momoi immediately approached him and stepped on his stomach as if she was claiming him to be hers in cliche movies. Aomine opened his eyes and stared at Momoi, who was not budging from her position.

"Satsuki, I can see your underwear," Aomine lied, unamused. Honestly, all he wanted was for Momoi to get off of him.

Momoi sprang off of Aomine, glaring at him furiously while hiding her blush. "Dai-chan!" she yelled, putting her hands on her hips. "Stop being a pervert!"

Aomine shrugged, getting off the floor. "Where's Tetsu?" he asked.

The Miracles scanned the gym, looking for their sixth man. The Inter High preliminaries were beginning today in a couple of hours, and they weren't sure if they could secure victory without their phantom sixth player on the court or on the benches, cheering them on. Akashi ordered Midorima to handle the first string players and get them on the bus, ready to leave.

Midorima looked at him, unsure if this was the right approach. "Akashi, are you sure?"

Akashi glared at him, his right eye almost brightening in color. It honestly scared Midorima whenever this happened. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" Midorima gulped and nodded, following his captain's orders. Then Akashi walked away, joining the search for Kuroko.

Midorima found the reserve first string members and gathered them up, talking to them about the itinerary set up for the next few hours. He sent them to the buses a few minutes later with their uniform and bag in tow. He followed them, supervising them the whole way with Coach Shirogane alongside him.

Meanwhile, Akashi had to take a bathroom break in the midst of his search for Kuroko. Disappearing into one of the locker room bathrooms, he emptied out his bladder and exited the stall. When he came out of his stall, he noticed a blue haired kid staring in the mirror in front of one of the sinks. The light blue hair and Teiko uniform gave it away. He had found Kuroko.

Akashi slipped in behind him, hoping to frighten his sixth man with his presence in the mirror. Kuroko, however, was not fooled for an instant. He had known that Akashi was in the bathroom for a couple minutes now, having been in here prior to his arrival. Kuroko had deliberately chosen to exit the stall he occupied in order to have his private, one on one conversation with his captain. As a bonus, it was far, far away from Araki Masako. She didn't need to know about this confrontation.

"It's been a while, Akashi-kun," Kuroko said monotonously, looking at his captain through the mirror. In his opinion, Akashi thought that this was the most normal looking he has ever been for the past couple weeks.

"It's good to see you too, Kuroko," Akashi answered, a small smile creeping its way on his face. "Feeling better now?"

"Yes, Akashi-kun," Kuroko replied, still without feeling. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, thank you for asking. However, I am still banned from playing basketball for another few weeks," Akashi sighed at the reminder. He was practically ready to play on the court again, but his doctor had given him a firm no when he asked Saturday at his appointment.

"Is Akashi-kun sad about that?" Kuroko asked, noticing the frown forming.

"Of course, Kuroko. I enjoy playing basketball. Not being able to play is quite a depressing event," Akashi answered, finally noticing how Kuroko wasn't quite meeting his eyes through the mirror. More than ever, his eye contact level was around his chin level and below, which displease Akashi since it wasn't normal for Kuroko to do so. "Kuroko, look at me," he ordered.

Kuroko, not for the first time, defied him. "Akashi-kun, I cannot do such a thing."

Akashi raised an eyebrow. "And why is that, Kuroko?"

Kuroko turned around, looking at Akashi properly for the first time in weeks. He took note of the almost completely gone bruise on his forehead and his sharp, piercing red eyes. Akashi's signature smirk was displayed on his face, and Kuroko had already known that he lost against him.

However, what Akashi saw surprised him. Instead of the normal, bright, and happy that he used to know, he saw the sunken cheeks, indicating that he hadn't been eating well lately. The dark circles under his eyes showed that he hasn't been sleeping either. The paler than usual face looked like he was sick. Akashi tilted his head, wondering if it was a good idea to let Kuroko even play today, especially since he hasn't practiced in weeks.

Kuroko glanced at his cell phone, which was in his hand. Flipping it open to read the time, he told Akashi, "It's time, Akashi-kun. Let's go," he urged.

Akashi didn't say anything except for a mere, "Yes."

* * *

The first match of the Inter High preliminaries was won successfully, 103-53. Everyone in the audience was not just wowed at the Miracles' plays, but they were fascinated by how they carried themselves. People believed that they were already professional basketball players.

Even at the preliminary stages, reporters came by to interview each of the Miracle boys on the court, including Akashi, who still led the team through his expertise in leadership and his battle tactics. Kuroko, unsurprisingly, managed to evade the reporters and not get interviewed, even though Akashi unwillingly let him on the court to unleash his power. Kuroko thought it was little mean to let him play against a weak team (Aomine's words, not his), but he didn't mind the moment he touched the ball for a pass.

"Kurokocchi, don't ever skip practice again!" Kise whined, clutching the tiny boy by the wrist.

"Kise-kun, you're being annoying," Kuroko deadpanned.

The Miracles were now in the locker room, discussing some of their bad plays (Aomine got three fouls this game - how in the world he managed them, Kuroko didn't want to know). Midorima was sitting on the bench, holding his lucky item in his right hand. Murasakibara was shoving squid into his mouth and down his throat (the smell reeked, and they were forced to pretend that it didn't bother them). Kise was holding Kuroko's hand, thinking that if he let go, he'd never see Kuroko again. Momoi was sitting on the other side of Kuroko, but reprimanding Aomine for his three fouls.

When Akashi had wrapped up his speech, he pointed at Takao, Midorima, Aomine, Kuroko, and Murasakibara. "You five are starting the next match against Kamizaki."

Aomine blinked at him. "We're playing another game today?" he asked.

Haizaki hit him on the head. "Yes, you dummy. Pay attention to the schedule, and not to your boyfriend."

If looks could kill, Haizaki would have been dead meat. "I'm not gay, you idiot!" he sputtered, making a leap at Haizaki. If Momoi hadn't held Aomine down by the collar of his sweatshirt, Aomine might have been expelled from the next game for attempting a fight against his teammate.

"Aomine, sit down," Akashi said in the sternest tone possible. Aomine, out of fear and respect for his captain, sat down immediately. Midorima adjusted his glasses, noticing a slight difference in his voice just then. "Yes, we do have another match soon against Kamizaki. I believe this is the team that Inoue is on? Am I right, Aomine?" Aomine nodded, grinning over the fact that he would finally face a strong opponent on the court.

A couple of hours later, Aomine was in the middle of the second match of the night. The scoreboard read 150-81, in Teiko's favor. The ball was in his hands, and he dribbled down the court to reach the hoop. He passed by several members of the Kamizaki team as he did this, but to his anguish, they did not react to him scoring. Instead, they stood there like statues, not even able to try guarding him from the hoop. It looked like they had given up on trying, given up on victory. The sweat running down their faces, the long practices they probably had prior to the preliminaries, had that meant anything to them?

Aomine scored, but victory meant nothing if the other team forfeited the win.

To himself, he wondered why they had given up, especially the person that he had seen as a rival. Aomine had loved the way Inoue once pressured him on the court and brought out his very best. He had enjoyed playing basketball against him, but that was the past. This was no fun at all.

Inoue laughed. "You don't get it, do you, Aomine Daiki?" he asked, and Aomine could hear the regret in his voice. "Just how much of a monster you are. Of course nobody can go up against you."

Aomine, hearing these words, started running across the court, trying to get away from Inoue. He knew that he had "awakened", in the terms that the general population would use. However, he never wanted to admit he had become a monster on the court. He thought he was just a strong player, but he was proven wrong by the person he called a rival. Inoue showed him just how much of a monster he was, and no one could contest him in a match.

"Aomine-kun," Kuroko said, holding out his fist for the usual fist bump. Aomine noticed the smile on his face, and wondered if it was for him.

"Tetsu," Aomine sighed. "It was no good after all," he said, trailing off sadly. Kuroko's mouth hangs slightly open, remembering their conversation long ago about Aomine's need for a rival. "The only person who can beat me is me." With that, he raced ahead of Kuroko, not wanting to let him see him cry to himself.

Kuroko stood there, motionless, after Aomine told him that it was all for naught. Not only had his fist bump been rejected, but he had failed in finding him a rival that he could play against. Saddened, he continued to play for the remainder of the match, but he didn't pass nor receive any balls. Murasakibara was still scoring from under the hoop and Midorima was receiving Takao's perfect passes without the need for a third party. Kuroko felt alone and unneeded on the court.

After bowing and thanking each other for the match (Kise noted the tension in the atmosphere and the forced replies from Kamizaki while on the bench), the Generation of Miracles retreated into the locker room. They slid on their sweatshirts and sweatpants right before Momoi walked inside to see them all.

"Congratulations, everyone!" she said excitedly, but the only response was a 'tch' from Aomine. No one was really in a celebratory mood. After all, victory was ingrained in their very souls by now, and getting anything other than victory was forbidden.

"Satsuki, shut up," Aomine said, picking up his towel and slinging it across his shoulder.

Momoi huffed. "Aomine-kun!" she yelled after him, not even calling him Dai-chan like she usually does. Aomine refused to even look at her as he exited the locker room. Midorima and Murasakibara watched the exchange happen, but didn't stop him.

At that moment, Momoi knew that whatever she had been doing in an attempt to change the future was failing, and she had to pick up the pace. For the first time, it hit her that the letter was revealing the future perfectly, and the contents were real. Surely, if this was what the future held, then the outcome would not change at all. Someone was bound to die by the rate they were going. Momoi vowed to change that.

After all, with every day that goes by, the Winter Cup drew nearer.

 _May 5: We go to Maji Burger to celebrate Akashi's first relationship with a girl. Akashi and Kuroko confront each other for the first time, and it was disastrous. Is Kuroko sad about something else?_

 _May 7: Teiko moves into the final stage of the preliminaries, but with a cost: Aomine begins to skip practice due to his monstrosity on the court. The Kamizaki match will prove it._

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

Question for you all to ponder over and maybe answer in your review: What kinds of romantic scenes do you like to read? Also, rank your Miracles please.

Thank you all for reading this chapter! If there are any inconsistencies, please notify me ASAP, and don't forget to leave a review below!


	5. letter five

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Lots of exciting things happening this chapter. I'm still relatively off on Orange canon (canon, this was the hairpin chapter, but I haven't gotten there yet - next chapter, I promise). Also, the fun fact about this chapter: half of it was written in a 4 hour car ride. I was in the mood, and the chapter came out decently. Bless my lucky stars that Google Drive can save offline now, or otherwise I would not have pulled off this feat. But again, many events happen in this chapter that contribute to covering some major plot holes (it wasn't that major, it was just annoying) and resolving a couple issues.

Have I edited anything? The answer is yes. I have revised maybe one chapter so far, and it is chapter 3. After going through the comments on Ao3 and realizing one major mistake I made, I have since edited chapter 3 to reflect what I actually meant. If you recall Luna, she actually doesn't exist. She was a decoy so that Kuroko did not have to face Akashi at the time. Kuroko is an only child, and this fic will stay canon with it. Thank you Cambria of Ao3 for pointing out the mistake!

Please continue to read and review! We are at 21 favorites and 39 follows, which is fantastic! I'd love to hit at least 50 on both, because if you do, there will be a surprise. I personally think you guys will enjoy the surprises as much as I do. Also, continue to voice your thoughts on who the mystery dead character (anyone got a better name for him?) and your thoughts on the chapter itself. They really do help, I promise you!

*Psychological Condition: Hints of Dissociative Identity Disorder

* * *

 **MAY 17**

Since Teiko made it through the preliminaries, Araki Masako had been endlessly hanging around Akashi for the past week. Frankly, the rest of the Generation of Miracles found it annoying.

In the cafeteria, all the Miracles (except for Akashi) were rounded up at one table, eating lunch. Aomine was resting back in his chair, bored of the conversation already. Midorima was talking to Kuroko about the assignments in Japanese class, the one class Kuroko was above average in. Kise was rambling about the photoshoot he did last weekend with the supermodel Alexandra Garcia and how beautiful she was (Aomine was ticked off more than anything by his remarks). Murasakibara was hijacking the Miracles' foods that were left untouched on their trays, growing colder by the minute. No one cared enough to tell him to stop, though.

Momoi stretched out her legs underneath the table, yawning. She hadn't gotten enough sleep the night before. In the midst of her yawn though, she noticed a black haired girl flocking around the cafeteria with her boyfriend. "Hey, everyone. Look," she pointed the couple out.

Murasakibara's eyes, usually indifferent to most things in life, turned sharp and angry. "Aka-chin sure looks thrilled to be around her. I'm going to crush him," he said, stretching his hands as if he was going to crush him now.

Kise, however, fawned over the couple. "They look great together, Murasakibaracchi!" he fanboyed. "Right, Midorimacchi?"

Of all the Miracles, Midorima knew the redhead the best. This meant that he knew Akashi's motives and reasons for dating Araki Masako. However, he had been hearing strange, ugly rumors about the girl lately, and he didn't want to inform Akashi of said rumors in case it would be a cause for being shut out by her.

Midorima sighed, adjusting the glasses on his face. "Araki Masako is the daughter of the founders of the famous law firm, Araki & Law, in fact. For Akashi to date her is natural for someone of his status," he said.

"Seriously?" Kise asked, jaw dropping.

"Akashi is from a distinguished family in Japan. He is likely being told to at least interact with people with a similar status to him in order to keep his reputation up. Araki is just part of it," Midorima further explained.

Kise gave the green haired shooter a side glance. "You look like you're well off too, Midorimacchi."

"Not as much as Akashi, in fact," Midorima answered.

Kuroko watched as the couple walked out of the cafeteria, finding that there wasn't any place to sit in the cafeteria alone and separated from the others. He noticed how Akashi was being led around by Araki, which was a huge contrast to what Akashi Seijuro would normally do. For a split second, he thought that perhaps Akashi still wanted to sit with his friends and teammates, but Araki had dragged him away from them.

"They spend quite a lot of time together," Momoi commented. "During breaks, Akashi-kun leaves class with her so they can go in the halls and have their own private conversations. Plus, Araki-san just asked our teacher if she could sit next to him in class. The teacher obliged."

Kuroko fidgeted in his seat. He wondered if this was because he did not notice the red sticky note in the back of his shoe locker.

Sometime ago, at the beginning of the month, Kuroko noticed a red sticky note stuck on his shoes. It had been a day where he was almost late to class, so Kuroko exchanged his shoes in a hurry and thought nothing of the note. The note had also been delivered during a particularly rough time, so Kuroko thought nothing of it. He happened to forget about the note for a couple of days, and he only remembered because it was now attached to the side of his locker. By the time he read the note though, Araki Masako had asked Akashi out on a date that weekend, and he accepted.

Kuroko regretted not reading and responding to the note quicker. Perhaps it might have prevented Akashi from dating Araki.

"Idiots. Haven't you all heard the rumors about Araki lately?" Aomine asked, yawning. "Remember the last guy she dated, Nijimura?"

"Yeah," Kise replied, unsure of how it was related to Akashi and Araki.

"Nijimura-senpai was barely able to break up, wasn't he, Aomine-kun?" Kuroko remembered from the last academic year. "Araki-san is apparently very controlling and gets very jealous easily."

"If that is the case, then there is a good chance Akashi has walked into a trap, nanodayo," Midorima supplied.

Kuroko's eyes betrayed the apprehension growing inside of him. On the outside, however, he remained calm. "Akashi-kun is not the type to blindly walk into a relationship without first knowing a girl's backstory. However, I do not believe he took all matters under consideration."

"What do you mean, Tetsu-kun?" Momoi inquired.

Kuroko pulled the red sticky note out of his blazer pocket. Unfolding the note, he showed the other Miracles what had been written on it. "It isn't signed, but I have a hunch it's from Akashi-kun. This is in his handwriting and the language is his. He says that he might be getting into a relationship soon, and asked for my opinion. I was not able to answer it in time, though."

Aomine had a sudden urge to wring his shadow by the neck. "Tetsu, this is the kind of thing that you have to answer."

Kuroko bowed. "I am sorry, Aomine-kun, but the damage has been done."

Kise ran his nimble fingers through his elegant blonde hair. "We can't tell Akashicchi that he might be dating a psycho, but we have to tell him that he's in a relationship with a sketchy person. But we all don't like Araki Masako, right?"

"Sure," Aomine responded.

"So if we tell Akashi that Araki might hurt him, would he listen to us?" Kise asked.

The Miracles pondered over the question for a few moments. Midorima answered with a 'maybe', to which the others agreed with him. There was a slight chance that Akashi would listen to his teammates, but then again, no one knew how Akashi was really in relationships. He could be completely lost in his love to even listen to the people he called friends.

"Tetsu-kun," Momoi said, leaning on the table, "why did Akashi start dating Araki anyways?" She was curious, since no one really mentioned why they began dating.

Kuroko shrugged. "It might have been because Akashi-kun was pressured to by his father, as indicated by the note, but he could have chosen anyone with a decent status."

"In other words, he could have chosen Midorimacchi?" Kise asked, eyes darting towards Midorima. Midorima gave him a horrified look, astonished as to how he could even ask something like that without even thinking twice. Kuroko nodded. "And he chose Araki. Why, Akashicchi?"

"Kuro-chin should have stopped him," Murasakibara said, shoving ice cream down his throat. "Ah, but it's not Kuro-chin's fault. We should have stopped him." The Miracles hung their heads, ashamed of even having celebrated their get together when for all they knew, Akashi could be in danger.

The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch period. Silently, the Miracles all got up together and tossed their trash away where it belonged. Then, they all went in different directions to return to their classes, wondering how the relationship would play out.

* * *

Momoi, locked up in the bathroom stall nearby her homeroom classroom, read today's letter again. She was honestly baffled by the contents, even though it had been written so straightforwardly. It almost freaked her out. She wondered if there were other things that people haven't said outright, and if she was missing a piece (or a million) of the puzzle.

 _May 17: After Akashi and Araki get together, the Miracles stop interacting with Akashi except for basketball related things that they can't come for you or Midorima for. Ask them to ask Akashi out more. I'm sure he would appreciate the offers, even if he has to turn them down. Dating relationships shouldn't interfere with what you all had before!_

Another thing that was strange about today's letter - it was the first that actually offered advice on how to change the future. It was as if the future Momoi knew that she was be skeptical of the letter initially, but would warm up to it and give it an unwavering amount of trust. Either way, Momoi appreciated the advice. It was insightful, and her future self had a point. New relationships weren't supposed to change what the Miracles had before.

What bugged Momoi was how all the Miracles actually stopped interacting with Akashi. Sure, a couple of them might be a little angry at Akashi (probably more jealous than angry, actually), but others wouldn't just flat out stop talking to him. Take Murasakibara, for example. The giant listened to Akashi because of his authority and how much stronger he was compared to him.

Momoi shoved the letter back in her schoolbag and exited the stall. Upon exiting, she ran into Araki, who had been using the farthest sink to check up on her makeup. Momoi didn't really understand why she had to check her makeup; if her makeup was running, then she would have raccoon-like eyes from the mascara and eyeliner running. However, Araki's makeup was still as wonderful as it had been this morning. Was this is a normal type thing for high school girls?

"Araki-san!" Momoi greeted with her usual cheery voice.

"Hello, Momoi-san," the other greeted in return, but with an icy tone. Momoi froze, wondering how the girl already harbored animosity towards her. She didn't think she had done anything to deserve such behavior. "A lovely day, don't you think?"

"Of course, the sun's out and there's a nice breeze to contrast with the heat of the sun," Momoi chirped. "Don't you agree?"

"Yes," Araki replied stiffly. She finished polishing her makeup and paused to look at her model self in the mirror. Satisfied, she turned and headed for the door. "Well, I'll be seeing you later."

"See you soon, Araki-san," Momoi answered, seeing the black haired girl disappear into the hallway.

Now to herself, she puffed out a ton of air that she didn't know had stocked up inside of her. Araki had been slightly intimidating, yes, but to Momoi, she came off as slightly rude. Araki had acted like she didn't want to talk to Momoi (again, why?), and she even took the liberty of leaving the bathroom when she started talking to her. Momoi thought it odd, but dismissed the thought.

Momoi left the bathroom and came back into the classroom, just in time for the next class to commence.

* * *

The first string was playing with second string that day. Akashi, after seeing some fairly good results after the Kamizaki match, decided to put Takao in as point guard, even though he had finally been cleared to play basketball again. Momoi didn't argue; in fact, she thought it was a good idea.

In the locker room, six people were changing inside into their regular white jerseys. Aomine was lying down on a bench, uninterested in today's match. Second string was definitely not competition for Aomine, no matter how you look at it. He would be the stronger power forward. Murasakibara had his arms raised, pouring the remainder of the potato crisps into his mouth. Midorima chided him for spilling crumbs everywhere.

"Murasakibara, you're driving Shin-chan crazy," Takao laughed.

"Die, Takao," was all Midorima said, already irritated. He headed for the dustpan and broom in his locker, something he always kept in his basketball locker for instances like this. Murasakibara had been a careless eater from the start, which meant crumbs, which led to an angry Midorima. Therefore, a broom and a nearby trashcan was slightly helpful to him.

As Midorima cleaned up the crumbs, Takao plopped onto one of the benches to tie his shoelaces. In the corner, Kuroko was pulling on his waistbands onto his forearm. Kise was standing next to his locker, already changed into his jersey. He was texting his manager, saying how he might be late to today's photoshoot. If he didn't text him, Kasamatsu (the manager) would have a field day.

Akashi poked his head into the locker room, looking at the rest of the Miracles and Takao. Most of them were ready to go warm up for the match, but then there was still Aomine, gazing off into space. Angry, he walked over to the resting Aomine.

"What do you think you're doing, Aomine?" he asked, folding his arms together across his chest. "Do you plan on playing in today's match?"

Aomine looked up at his seething captain. "Not really," he muttered. "They can't best me."

Akashi wasn't amused, nor was he surprised that Aomine had said such a thing. Deciding to compromise with the ace, he offered a solution. "Don't play for the first half then. Nijimura will take your place. You must play in the second half. Is that clear?"

Aomine darted his eyes to the side. "Sure, whatever," he replied with indifference in his voice. Akashi commanded everyone else to get on the court to begin the ten minute warm up before the match started.

In the bleachers, Araki was watching her boyfriend captain the first string team around during the game. Sitting beside her were her two friends, Aida Riko and Garcia Alex. All three of them were making remarks towards players on the court, and quite rudely according to those who sat nearby them. Araki focused her eyes on Akashi the entire team, and when others tried to talk to him, she sent her glaring eyes towards them.

Nobody talked to Akashi, regardless of the situation. Akashi was hers, and only hers.

On the court, the five members were huddled in a circle, coming up with a plan to beat the hell out of the second string. Takao and Midorima were talking about how the others should redirect passes to them in order to get the best possible chance of scoring. Kuroko instantly disagreed, saying how he would pass to anyone that was open. Kise was too busy staring off into space, and Murasakibara was only interested in blocking and doing rebounds to "crush the other team", in his own words.

The benchwarmers, including Aomine, Akashi, and Nijimura, were busy chanting for the first string team. The bench players for second string were doing the same, only for the second string team. The score was currently at 56-39, in favor of first string. Coach Sanada was overseeing the practice match, and Momoi was overseeing the analyzing as usual.

The whistle blew, and Kise dribbled the ball down the court. Realizing that he was about to get blocked by two opponents, he sent the ball flying to Kuroko. Kuroko, seeing the pass through his peripheral vision, tossed the ball over to Midorima, who had been wide open. Catching the ball, the shooter sent the ball straight through the hoop. Another three points for first string.

The buzzer sounded, indicating that the second quarter had ended. Halftime began, and so the players walked off the court, sweaty and dehydrated. Momoi passed out cold water bottles to the five boys, all of them accepting the water. Kuroko thanked Momoi, and guzzled down half the water down his throat.

"Kurokocchi, how thirsty are you?" Kise asked, swallowing the water. "I don't think I've ever seen you drink that fast."

"Very thirsty, Kise-kun. The game has taken a toll on me, and I fear I almost reached my limits," Kuroko replied. Akashi narrowed his eyes, eyeing how fatigued his muscles were now. He had been relied on a lot during the first half, and he would have to pull him out for the second half.

Aomine took off his sweatshirt and sweatpants, ready to play during the second half, per Akashi's compromise. However, he didn't look excited at all. Akashi headed into the locker room and beckoned the Miracles to follow him in suit.

When the Miracles had filed into the locker room, Akashi had them sit down on the bench. He wasn't about to ask them to wear out their leg muscles before third quarter began.

"Well done on taking the lead in the beginning of the match. Most of you have shown improvement from the last preliminary. However, we cannot choose to relax now. The second string has been working diligently as well, and we cannot deny their efforts. Please continue to play your best on the court," Akashi started off. He noticed the bored looks from most of the Miracles' faces. "As much as I would like those to be my final words, I do have one proposal. This team is strong." The Miracles nodded; they could all agree to this. "Due to that, the lack of motivation is noticeable after victory has been secured. Therefore, I would like to create a quota. Basically, each member must score at least twenty points during a game."

Kise laughed. "Fine by me. This sounds fun." Akashi had a feeling that he'd agree to it the fastest. Of course, his theory was correct.

Aomine grunted. "Yeah, somehow it feels like a drag."

Akashi stared at Teiko's ace. "The lack of motivation has primarily been coming from you, Aomine. The team's morale suffers if their ace isn't tenaciously scoring points. "

Aomine, unable to find a counterargument to Akashi's point, surrendered to the quota. "All I have to do is score twenty points. It's fine by me."

The other Miracles readily agreed, and Akashi explained that because Kuroko was the way he was, he did not have to participate in the quota requirement. As long as he continued to perform the crazy invisible passes, he would not have to meet the requirement. Then, Akashi shooed them all back onto the court.

"Aomine, Murasakibara, Midorima, Takao, and Haizaki are starting third quarter," Akashi announced when he met up with the rest of the first string. Four people headed onto the court, but one player was missing. Akashi scoped the gymnasium, searching for the fifth player.

Momoi came up to Akashi and murmured something in his ear (although she had the sensation of being watched with an eagle eye behind her). Akashi nodded, and looked at Kise, telling him to get on the court to start the second half. Kise didn't bother to question his captain when he saw the rage in his eyes.

Midorima walked off the court, standing behind Akashi. "Haizaki left during the break, didn't he?" he asked softly, but Akashi could hear the anger in his words. He nodded to reply.

"That's the last straw," Akashi found himself saying, a cold, icy tone vibrating in his voice. Luckily, no one was paying attention other than Midorima himself. Hopefully, this conversation would be kept in between himself and Akashi. "Haizaki's behavior cannot be tolerated any more. We're done with him. Let's suggest he resign."

Midorima's eyes widened. The voice change hadn't been a huge factor, but the change in personality right there - it freaked the green haired shooter out internally. He had never seen nor heard his captain before with such authority and power, as though he was the emperor and everyone else was his servants. Plus, Akashi had never seen people as toys, but as human beings that strive for their absolute best. But if that Akashi was the real Akashi he had known for so long, then who was this?

The buzzer for third quarter rang, and Midorima sprinted onto the court, thinking to himself that he'd deal with the situation later.

* * *

The fourth quarter ended a half hour later with the first string winning, 103-61. It had been an overwhelming victory, nothing short of usual. After doing the bows at the end of the game, the first string team headed into the locker room for a small recap (not small if Akashi's running it) and to change out of their sweaty uniforms.

Before that happened, however, Midorima noticed a black haired girl practically speed walking across the gym just to see her boyfriend. He noticed how she was walking on the court, where there was sweat at every inch. Midorima shook his head, knowing what might happen if she wasn't careful, and disappeared into the locker room first.

"Sei-chan!" she called out, using her pet name for Akashi.

To be perfectly honest, Akashi despised how she used his first name. The name Sei-chan from her sounded like something said in disgust, and on top of other things, Sei-chan sounded too childish and implied that she was the dominant person, when it clearly wasn't the case. Frankly, Akashi wanted her to stop using that name, but Araki Masako didn't listen to reason a good plenty of times.

Akashi stood up straighter and tried not to visibly flinch at her choice of words. "Masako," he said indifferently. "Did you enjoy the game?"

Murasakibara dropped his jaw slightly. "Aka-chin's already on first name basis. That's a surprise."

"I know, that's not like Akashicchi," KIse replied.

All of a sudden, Araki slipped on a thin layer of sweat on the court. The layer was thin enough to not be seen unless the person had actually been trying to see it, but thick enough for something to slip and fall. Araki stumbled to regain her balance, but then someone immediately obscured her vision. Angry, she pushed the person over and into Akashi's arms, which had been wide open for her.

Kise, watching the scene unfold from the Miracles' bench, ran over to the fallen player. "Kurokocchi!" he cried out.

Momoi was already on her feet the moment Araki pushed Kuroko out of the way. Running over to Kuroko, she took a precursory glance at him, making sure that nothing had been hurt. Kuroko himself laid sprawled out on the court, not moving for Momoi. Luckily, he was conscious and hadn't hit his head on the hard wooden floor.

Akashi glared at the girl in his arms. "Did you do that on purpose?" he asked her in a quiet but furious tone.

"No, Sei-chan!" Araki said defensively. "I swear I didn't push him on purpose!"

Akashi narrowed his eyes at her, and his red eyes scared Araki. "Then apologize to Kuroko, now."

Araki smiled deviously, and her black eyes devoid of any fear she had for Akashi. "Why should I?" she asked, laughing mirthlessly. "He's so useless, Sei-chan. He deserves to be pushed out and away from all of you. Hell, I could play basketball better than him. Want a bet, Sei-chan?" she asked, smirking.

Akashi's blood boiled at her words, and he realized that the rumors surrounding her had been true. Nijimura, seeing Akashi's one huge mistake, shrank into the locker room, wanting to not be there when he cracked. The rest of the Miracles, even those that had originally been in the locker room, were now standing in the gymnasium, ready to beat the living hell out of Araki. Though her words might have once been true, there was no doubt now that Kuroko was a vital asset to their team, and to their victory. Kuroko was more useful than she'd ever be in her lifetime, and so much more kinder to them.

With all the force he could muster, Akashi pointed to the door of the gymnasium. By then, he had let go of Araki, not wanting to touch her filthy skin anymore. "Please remove yourself from my presence this instant, Araki,"

Aida Riko, now having reached her side, nodded her head forcefully, escorting her friend out of the gym before she blew up in front of the team any more than she already had. Her blonde friend, Garcia Alex, assisted her in helping Araki out of the gym, but not without giving an apology to the teams first. Akashi acknowledged it with a dismissive nod.

Midorima was kneeled over Kuroko, checking again for any injuries. Other than a couple of bruises that he might have later, he seemed to be okay. It failed to stop Akashi from carrying Kuroko back inside the locker room though.

"Akashi-kun, you don't have to carry me," Kuroko said, fighting to hide the blush on his face. "I'm fine."

"Don't be reckless, Kuroko. You just fought very well in the game today," Akashi replied. "As much as we pride ourselves in Midorma's doctoral knowledge, I cannot ensure that you don't have any internal injuries we don't know about. I'd feel better carrying you."

Kuroko hid his face to hide the blush that was definitely on his face by now. He figured that Akashi had hinted at something a little deeper, but did not want to confront that issue right now. Instead, he decided to leave the conversation as it was. Akashi seemed to enjoy himself a little too much anyways.

At the same time, Akashi was reprimanding himself for saying too much. The last sentence had him reeling in disgust because it signified the attraction he withheld for Kuroko. Indeed, he harbored some sort of feelings for Kuroko, but he wasn't sure if they were about love or it was purely because of friendship. Either way, he did not want to lose what he had for his teammate, and hoped that Kuroko did not pick up on the subtle hint of attraction. It would make things too awkward between them.

Meanwhile, in the background, Takao was snickering at the two of them. He had noticed their attraction long ago, but since he saw the hesitation between the two, he did not say it outright in front of the other teammates. Hell, they probably had a suspicion, but kept it to themselves. Akashi might have slaughtered them if they even tried to hint at it.

"Shin-chan," he wailed. "Can't you look me over for a checkup?" he asked.

"No, idiot," he replied. "Now go in the locker room."

Takao sulked. "Fine, Shin-chan."

In the locker room, Akashi quickly reviewed the game and overall strengths and weaknesses. He predicted that the next round of the Inter High would go okay if they kept up the hard work. Pleased with the outcome, he dismissed the team for the day, ordering them to get some rest tonight. Everyone complied with the request.

Momoi, waiting for Aomine to finish getting dressed, sat back and reflected on the letter. Remembering how Akashi continued to care for the Miracles, even though many (if not all) had tried to stay out of his hair for the time being, and how the future once turned out, she decided that tonight would be a good night to go grab some ice cream to celebrate.

"Dai-chan!" she waved to Aomine, who had been leaving the locker room and slinging his basketball bag over his shoulder. "Let's go get some ice cream!"

"Satsuki, I want to sleep," Aomine complained. Momoi pouted and gave him the puppy dog eyes. Aomine had always fallen for her puppy dog eyes, so he agreed to the request as soon as she pulled them out. Momoi reveled in her victory.

"Ice cream?" Kise asked, clapping Aomine's back. "Can I join, Momoicchi?"

"Of course, Ki-kun!" Momoi responded, smiling. Looking at the other Miracles exiting the locker room, she asked them all to join her in the expedition to the convenience store. They all agreed, except for Akashi.

"I believe I have to end ties with a certain somebody right now," Akashi started, but Murasakibara shook his head.

"Aka-chin, she probably already left the school by now," Murasakibara said. "Her friends probably dragged her out to keep her away for now. You can break up with her through text."

Kise glared at Murasakibara. "It's rude to break up with someone over text!"

Midorima coughed. "In fact, I can't deny that."

Akashi sighed. He knew that his teammates were trying to persuade him into coming, and after the recent events, he could use the fresh air and the comfort of his team. Slowly, he nodded his head, saying that he would accompany them to get ice cream. Kise whooped at the agreement, and Momoi didn't stop smiling.

This was the first step towards a new future. They would bring back the dead Miracle alive.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Did you enjoy this chapter? Leave a review telling me about it! Don't forget to follow & favorite this fic as well to stay updated with it! The poll for the mystery dead character is still up and running, so go vote on my profile if you'd like!


	6. letter six

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

First off, I would like to apologize for how bland this chapter might seem. The original plan had been the fireworks scene, but the chapter ended up being lengthy in words and pages on Google Docs. Therefore, I decided to split the chapter in two, so this one will cover nothing too deep and nothing ridiculous. However, I know some of you have been waiting for some of my personal pairing trash writes (definitely not calling out my trash level for AkaKuro), winkwink. This chapter basically sets up for the cultural festival arc of Orange, though, and I have excluded the parallel world chapter of Orange mainly because it was really for the 26 self version. If readers want to see that, I don't mind writing it in, but it won't be done until the very end of Alternative since it has almost no effect on the plot.

Also, I think the current tally is at 25 favorites and 42 follows? I thank you all so much for following and favoriting this fanfic and supporting me. Please continue to review, review, and review though! I encourage reviews so much, and you'd be making me smile! Seriously. Y'all's reviews are so nice and genuinely bring me happiness. I'm proud to be a fanfic writer when you guys do this.

*Psychological Conditions: Depression, Dissociative Identity Disorder

* * *

 **MAY 20**

Kuroko stared at the top of his wooden desk in class, a pencil in hand. Numbly, he traced the pictures already embedded in the surface. Meanwhile, his mental thoughts were running wild.

Lately, Araki had been clingy to Akashi lately. In the past, she had been clingy and stole him during breaks and class time, but now, she was being even more clingier than usual. She attended basketball practices now and went home with Akashi. It gave no room for anyone to squeeze in with Akashi's schedule and Araki's constant presence. Akashi had not been responding well to her presence, either. Kuroko didn't know the full details about it, but he's heard things from Midorima.

Two seats in front of him, Aomine was gazing out of the window, unresponsive to any attempts Kuroko made in order to talk to him. Kuroko didn't blame him. The idea of not having a true rival was saddening and seemed to really affect him somehow.

Kuroko sighed. Thoughts swarmed his constant state of mind. He wondered if Akashi lied in saying that he would break it off with Araki. It had been a couple weeks since Araki had shoved Kuroko, and Akashi had failed in breaking it off since then. Kuroko couldn't see how it was taking him so long either. He has had so many opportunities, yet he hasn't said anything. Another thought was that maybe Akashi didn't care about him anymore. Maybe him getting angry on behalf of Kuroko was accidental and only for a teammate. Akashi didn't have any reason to be around him anyways, other than basketball. Also, there's the one about what Araki had said, the one about him being utterly useless. Kuroko didn't deny it; he was practically useless to the team since he only has his passes in his arsenal. Akashi even forbade him from practice shooting, so Kuroko was not getting better at his fundamental basketball skills. Kuroko imagined a time where the Miracles would no longer need him, and a tear slipped out at the idea.

Kuroko vowed that that would never happen.

Sadly enough, Garcia Alexandra, the supermodel, had been placed in his class. Garcia was not as bad as Araki most of the time, but sometimes she would turn around and snicker at Kuroko. Kuroko pretended that he wasn't affected by the action.

Garcia leaned over to Kuroko, whispering into his ear. "I hear that it's your fault that Akashi-san and Masako-chan aren't on good terms. How do you feel about that, Kuroko Tetsuya?" she pronounced every syllable of Kuroko's name. It infuriated Kuroko, but he couldn't find a response to her question. It was true, after all.

The very last main thought circulating his brain had been that statement. Kuroko subconsciously knew that it was his fault for having strained their relationship. At the same time, he was not sorry for ruining it, since Araki hadn't been a splendid person in the first place. However, he did feel guilty for getting in the way, regardless of how toxic the relationship might have been.

"They could've married if it weren't for you," Garcia hissed.

Kuroko figured that maybe in one world, they would have married. On the outside, they were a perfect couple. The Miracles knew different, and they didn't hold back about their feelings when it was just the six of them (when Akashi wasn't in sight).

Kuroko felt a demanding presence behind him. He didn't have to turn around to know that his captain was standing there, a sharp, furious look on his face.

Akashi glared daggers at Garcia. He had successfully slipped past Araki when he went to the staff room for something (that was a lie), and made his way around to go see other people he would rather spend time with. Midorima congratulated him on his escape, along with Momoi, and Akashi was now headed for Kuroko's class. When he walked in, he heard everything Garcia was saying, and now, he was livid. This was what Kuroko had endured for the past two weeks?

Garcia looked up, noticing Akashi's fiery red eyes staring into her soul. Garcia cowered back, scared of what might happen if she incurred the wrath of Akashi Seijuro. She's heard the rumors before, but she didn't want to find out firsthand how true those rumors were.

Fun fact, Akashi himself spread those rumors so that people wouldn't mess with him just because of his size. Too bad he didn't need that rumor to maintain his superiority in his grade level. Everyone feared and respected him either way.

"A-ah, Akashi-san," Garcia started, a cowardly smile on her face. Of course she'd be trying to eliminate any kind of wrongdoing she had been doing lately.

Akashi leaned forward, getting close to her face. "I suggest you stay away from Kuroko from now on," he said in a dangerously low voice. "Or I may have to dispose of you." Kuroko noticed the slight voice change, as if Akashi had complete control over everything. Garcia gulped and nodded, afraid of the consequences if she did not obey him.

The next moment, Kuroko was being dragged out of the classroom by Akashi, as he explained to Kuroko's homeroom teacher about his need to stop by the clinic. His homeroom teacher let them out, no pass or anything.

"Akashi-kun, I can walk by myself," Kuroko insisted. Akashi let go of his arm, and Kuroko stood upright.

Akashi led them outside, and they sat down underneath a tree. Kuroko liked the heat of the sun basking on his face. Around the two of them, the birds chirped and the wind was rustling ever so slightly. They knew summer was approaching quickly. The hot days would begin soon.

Akashi leaned against the tree. "It's not your fault for hurting our relationship," he began. "In fact, I had predicted it would come eventually. Araki Masako is not my type of girl, and I realized this at an awful time."

"You heard her?" Kuroko asked. He's not surprised, but he just needed the confirmation.

"Of course. Her inability to keep her voice down is a wonderful asset sometimes," Akashi said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I had planned to break up with her, but my father has proposed that we remain together for a little longer to sustain relationships in the public eye."

"That would mean a while, Akashi-kun," Kuroko pointed out. Though he had never met the boy's father before, he had gotten a slight glimpse of his personality through Akashi.

"Huh? It would only be another few days, for I have already set the trap."

Kuroko saw Akashi's right eye shine brighter, and wondered if his eye was changing colors. In addition, he found Akashi's choice of words to be atypical to what he would normally choose. Kuroko didn't think much of it, because in the end, it was the same Akashi with two red eyes.

* * *

 **MAY 24**

Teiko High School made it through the last round of the preliminaries (the ones that decided who would represent the Tokyo Prefecture in the Inter High), and became one of the two schools to represent the prefecture. This was not the only thing that made the Miracles joyous; that same day, Akashi ended his relationship with Araki. The members of the Generation of Miracles were thrilled over the news.

Akashi raised an eyebrow at the other six people at his lunch table. "Did you all not approve of her?" he asked.

Kise squirmed in his seat a little bit. "We were okay with both of you dating until we recalled the rumors about her."

"And you didn't tell me?"

Aomine intervened. "Kise thought you'd be mad if we said anything." Kise started to protest, but Aomine wouldn't hear any of it. The other Miracles agreed with Aomine. Akashi gave the blonde an amused smirk, almost inaudibly laughing at the model. Kise pouted.

"Quite the contrary. I'd be mad if you didn't say anything, Kise," Akashi's lips danced in amusement.

Kise switched the topic, unwilling to let it drag on about his failures. "Anyways, are we all going to the festival next month?" he asked in a peppy voice. "Because I want to go with this girl that I met the other day…"

Aomine glared at him. "You found another girl?" he asked incredulously.

Kise proceeded to babble about the girl he met at a modeling shoot the other day. Aomine, Momoi, and Murasakibara were the only people who were somewhat interested in what he had to say. The others were talking about the cultural festival itself.

About the festival, most of the classes have already picked out what they were going to contribute to the festival. Kuroko and Aomine's class had decided to put on a play, while Akashi's class had somehow chose a maid cafe (despite the level of intelligence in that classroom). Of course, it had been Araki's idea to have a maid cafe. Now that they had broken up, Akashi wanted nothing more than to not be a part of their production.

"Are you asking anyone to the festival, nanodayo?" Midorima asked, cheeks flushing. Kuroko and Akashi were somewhat surprised by the fact that Midorima had asked such a question.

"Perhaps," Akashi replied. "I wouldn't count on it, though."

Kuroko shook his head. "I like going with you all, like last year. What about you, Midorima-kun?"

Midorima flushed red, and Akashi's eyebrows raised in suspicion. "As a matter of fact, I will not be attending the festival with anyone in particular," he responded.

Kuroko stared at him. "Midorima-kun, I believe that you are not being overly honest with your feelings here," he deadpanned. Midorima had to resist the urge to strangle Kuroko with his comment. Not even attempting to hide the flush in his cheeks, he glared at the teal haired boy. Before he could respond, however, Kuroko spoke again, but this time, with a sincere smile. "You don't have to tell us who, Midorima-kun. It's just nice to hear that you found someone special." Midorima merely huffed.

Akashi let out a laugh. "Congratulations, Midorima," he said with a smile. Midorima turned away, refusing to even acknowledge it anymore. "Well, I suppose I will see you all at the cultural festival. Best of luck to you all."

The lunch bell rang, and the Generation of Miracles scrambled to their next class. Lunches were tossed into the trash, and despite Kuroko's best efforts to put them in the trash can, the food ended up on the floor. Chuckling to himself, Akashi helped Kuroko clean up the mess he made.

"I'm sorry, Akashi-kun," Kuroko apologized, picking up the empty milk carton. "I should have been more careful."

Akashi did not mind helping Kuroko; in fact, he saw it as an opportunity to get closer to the shadow. "It's quite alright, Kuroko. I am in no rush to go to class."

Kuroko gave him a soft smile, admiring how the tiny smile on Akashi's face made his eyes softer. Though the red could signify the devil in him sometimes (normally only during practices), they also showed how much he cared and loved his teammates. Add the fringe that covered part of his face, and Kuroko had to turn away to avoid being questioned about his scarlet red face. Akashi was a beautiful person in his opinion, and he admired him from afar.

However, what Kuroko and Akashi both lacked was the ability to face their feelings, hence why neither of them have bothered to say anything to each other about it.

When the styrofoam tray hit the bottom of the trash can, Kuroko looked at Akashi, smiles in his face, but his lips were pursed tight. "I must be going now. I will see you at practice later, Akashi-kun."

"See you later, Kuroko," Akashi said, seeing the teal haired boy out of the lunchroom before he made his way back to his classroom.

* * *

 **JUNE 1**

According to Midorima Shintaro, today was predicted to be a fantastic day for Sagittarius. Akashi normally didn't believe in horoscopes, but today, he could use some luck on his side. He had decided, after spending time to casually talk (or shamelessly flirting) with Kuroko about their interests, that he would finally ask the phantom sixth man to the cultural festival with him. Akashi was impatient when it came to this, and the festival was approaching rapidly.

The school day had proceeded like normal. Akashi tried not to give away anything about him confessing to Kuroko later on that day, but Midorima, knowing the redhead well, sensed the slight impatience and anxiousness. He failed to ask his captain about it, though. Akashi was grateful for the lack of questions.

Practice had even been normal as well. Midorima had ran the drill for the day, as Akashi was busy with student council work today (of all days, it had to be today). He tried to finish as quickly as he could without messing anything up. Perfection was required in everything he did; he was an Akashi, and he could not fail the reputation preceding him.

After practice and student council work ended, Akashi made it into the gym on time enough to see the Miracles waiting in the bleachers for him, except for Aomine. Kuroko mentioned that he had not shown up to practice at all today. As worried as Akashi was about his attendance record, he had sent an email earlier to Coaches Sanada and Shirogane to fix the problem. He wouldn't worry about it now. Additionally, Momoi had left right after practice to track him down.

"Student council work done now?" Kise asked, bouncing out of the bleachers to greet the redhead. "Let's go get ice cream!"

Murasakibara whined. "But we should go to the arcade. What do you think, Aka-chin?"

Akashi tensed up. Though his plan had already been slightly wrecked by the unannounced student council work, this was sending his plan down the toilet. However, he couldn't deny the option of going to the arcade. It seemed like the best possibility if he were to get privacy to ask Kuroko. "Arcade sounds wonderful, Murasakibara. Let's go there tonight."

Murasakibara cheered, ecstatic to go to the arcade. Kise was okay with the option, since he had not been there in ages. Midorima and Kuroko agreed to come as well. With that, Akashi locked up the gym for the night and the remaining Miracles headed over into the downtown portion of the city for the arcade.

Nights in Tokyo were always crowded, but this was nothing compared to weekend nights in the city. Weekends were generally an awful time to venture there, since there were crowds almost everywhere you could possibly go to in Tokyo. Therefore, the Miracles liked to go into the city during school nights. Less people were around, so they didn't have to worry about being separated or getting lost.

Kise led the group of five into the arcade. When they arrived, the Miracles all split up and took over several game consoles, trying to declare themselves as the reigning champion of each game. Akashi chuckled and shook his head, watching them all play to their hearts' content.

"Akashi-kun, would you like to be my opponent?" Kuroko asked out of nowhere, startling the redhead. Akashi turned around to look at where the phantom sixth man was pointing to - the driving game. Liking the competitive game to play, he nodded in agreement.

Kuroko led the two of them to the game, and Akashi paid for them to play the game. They both took their respective seats on the motorcycles, and began the game. They played several rounds, and neither of them succumbed to the other in defeat (though Akashi won all of the games). While they played, they conversed about a few things.

"You're a horrible driver, Akashi-kun," Kuroko pointed out during one of the games.

Akashi laughed at the bluntness of the statement. "I never said I was a proficient driver, especially on a motorcycle."

"I think you would apply the same principles as in a car, Akashi-kun."

"Oh really?"

When they finished, Akashi went up to the prize booth and traded in his overload of arcade tickets for special prizes. He noticed that one of the prizes was a giant teddy bear with a red bow wrapped around its neck. Thinking how adorable it was, he chose the teddy bear. The man behind the counter accepted his tickets and exchanged them for the teddy bear. Akashi hugged teh bear before proceeding evilly with his plan.

Akashi asked Kuroko to close his eyes and hold out his arms. Kuroko, already seeing the prize, had an idea of what the redhead might do. To be more accurate, he wished that Akashi would give the bear to him. Kuroko was definitely the type to like romantic things, and receiving cute, huge gifts were wonderful. Akashi shoved the bear into his grasp and forced him to hold his new teddy bear. Then, he asked Kuroko to open his eyes, hoping that it would be surprising (not).

Cheeks flushed now and unable to hide them anymore from Kuroko, he decided to just go for it. "Kuroko, do you mind going with me to the cultural festival?" Akashi asked, trying not to stammer over his words and look sincere without being embarrassed. Inside, he hoped that he would not be rejected. That would a shame, especially for an Akashi like him.

Kuroko was taken aback by Akashi's invitation. Surely the redhead was kidding, or his ears heard something wrong. Teiko's captain wasn't gay, nor was he even attracted to a kid that can do nothing but rely on others. Surely Akashi wasn't speaking to him, and if Kuroko turned around, Midorima would be there to accept it.

A minute ticked by, and there was no answer from either of them. Kuroko realized that he had indeed heard right (what else would he have heard?) and jerked his head to answer yes. "I'd love to, Akashi-kun," he answered, extremely happy that his best friend and crush had asked him to the festival. Kuroko was glad that he hadn't heard wrong.

Akashi was shell shocked. He had expected Kuroko to be weirded out by the fact that he was interested in guys, but he has not questioned him yet about it. Not only that, but Kuroko even accepted his invitation, which literally meant that Akashi had a date to the cultural festival (albeit a guy). Plus, it was with someone he was comfortable with and liked even more. Akashi was thrilled, no doubt about it.

Kuroko brushed his fingers against Akashi's, making the captain's heart beat slightly faster. A warm smile was plastered on his face, and Akashi returned it. Kuroko was excited, not only for the cultural festival, but what might lie ahead for the two of them.

Maybe one day, they'll finally hold hands, just like in his fantasies.

* * *

In the distance, Momoi spectated the confession unravel before her eyes. She had a suspicion that Akashi had planned on asking Kuroko to the festival ever since he attempted to break things off with Araki. Plus, she knew that they both had feelings for each other. It wasn't hard to put some things together. What else were her investigative skills for?

A crinkled paper was in her hands. If one uncrumpled it, it might have read:

June 1: Teacher taught us about parallel worlds today, and how they might exist. Nobody knows for sure though. It's really complicated. Akashi barely understood it. What I did learn from it was that by changing the past, we might also be changing good memories. If that's so, I'm sorry.

If I did have a memory I didn't want to forget, it would be of the cultural festival. They're unfortunately not your memories; they belong to Akashi-kun and Tetsu-kun. Don't lose that memory, and more importantly, don't let them lose that memory. The same goes with Midorin and Takao-kun, Mukkun and Himuro-kun, and even Dai-chan and Ki-kun. This is precious to all of them.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Review away to your heart's content please! Any ideas on what might come next (other than some romantic firework scenes)?


	7. letter seven

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

This chapter ended up being really long, and I guess I should have expected it if I was going to add all that I needed/wanted to add. Unfortunately for everyone, this may be the only junk shipping mess chapter you'll be getting, because from this point on, we're moving forward for plot. Don't worry, there will still be tiny snippets of your ships. I just have the plot ideas for the next two chapters, and the next letter scene has, in fact, already been pre-written. I think I wrote it during chapter 4. The next letter reveal will be at the end of chapter 8 (just like Orange canon), because I managed to squeeze the entirety of the festival into one chapter. I believe many of you might have expected this one, though.

We are now at a solid 49 follows and 30 faves, and I thank you all so much! Please continue to read & review, even if you are logged in as a Guest. I still am enjoying everyone's reviews - so glad you all like this fic as much as I do! Of course, reviewing about how much this Miracle baby is precious may or may not help save your precious Miracle...

*Psychological Conditions: Dissociative Identity Disorder, Anxiety

* * *

 **JUNE 21**

The week of the cultural festival came, and many students at Teiko were polishing their classrooms and performances to make it as perfect as they possibly could. Akashi, president of the student council, was making last minute rounds to each classroom and making sure that they knew their boundaries (if they were like a cafe or haunted house), or if they knew their performance time (stage plays and band pieces). Some of the student council members accompanied him in his rounds. Overall, he was pleased with the results. The cultural festival would definitely be a success.

Aomine and Kuroko were being featured in their class's play of Romeo and Juliet, a famous Shakespearean play. Akashi, when making his rounds, had seen a glimpse of their play. Luckily, it wasn't the scene that Kuroko was featured in, so the surprise was still in store for him.

Kise and Murasakibara class was doing a fashion show, since Kise was quite influential in his class's decision for the festival. It hadn't been Kise's idea initially, but he warmed up to the idea quickly and helped shape the direction that it was going in. Plus, his modeling skills was useful tremendously.

Kise was taking a girl to the festival, and the Miracles were not surprised at all. Not only had Kise told them that he planned on asking a girl, he even asked her last week and since then, it had been trending news at Teiko. None of the Miracles had not gone an hour without hearing about it. Even the lucky girl was crazy enough to continue boasting about it. Frankly, the Miracles found it quite annoying.

On the first day of the festival (there were 3 days total), Akashi and Kuroko were found running all over the campus, assisting many of the booths and classrooms in their crises. One classroom almost burned down, another happened to make a girl cry, and the other almost blew up the school. Akashi was not amused by any of them, but Kuroko had to stifle a giggle at the last one. Only his homeroom class would find a way to blow up the school.

"Akashi-kun, you cannot deny how stupid Aomine-kun," Kuroko said in between giggles. Akashi rolled his eyes, muttering about how Aomine would be strangled at practice. Kuroko didn't bother to defend the ace.

Nothing special was going on for any of the Miracles today. In the afternoon, after everyone had settled down into the routine for the next three days, they all met up to explore places together. Murasakibara dragged them all to Akashi's class first, since they had a cafe and he was hungry. Midorima could not fault him; his stomach was rumbling too.

After the cafe (Kise and his date enjoyed the decorations in the classroom a bit too much), they all headed by Kise's classroom to watch the fashion show. Though Kise would have loved to be a part in all three days of the show, his classmates restricted him to two. Since the basketball team had promised to put on a huge exhibition, Kise could not do tomorrow's show. Therefore, the Miracles spectated Kise as he strutted down the catwalk, making flashy moves. His date was highly entertained. Aomine sulked in his seat, bored as hell.

When Kise was finished with his last model walk, Aomine had half a mind to drag Kise out of the class so that they could go outside and do something more fun. Akashi suggested using the pool house (run by another class) on the rooftop of the school, and all of the Generation of Miracles hurried upstairs to use the pool. It was open to everyone during the festival, and it was a perfect way to cool off in the summer's heat. Kuroko is already sweating through his uniform.

As soon as they reached the rooftop, they eagerly searched for a swimsuit that they could each borrow from the school's collection of swimsuits. After they rapidly changed into them, they all bounded into the pool, splashing everyone as they cannonballed into the water. Everyone had volunteered Akashi up to pay for the entrance fee since it had been his idea, and he graciously accepted the proposal. Therefore, he had been last to jump into the pool.

"This feels nice!" Kise said, floating on top of the water. His date agreed, as she dragged Kise down under the water.

Murasakibara swam right into Himuro Tatsuya, one of the members on first string. Familiar with him, since they were in the same class, he greeted him. "Muro-chin," he said, using his pet name for him. "It's good to see you."

Himuro glanced at the purple haired giant. "Ah, Atsushi, it's good to see you too," he replied, smiling at him. "How are you enjoying the festival?"

Murasakibara looked away and into the clear blue sky. "It's okay," he answered, uninterested. Himuro suspected that Murasakibara was not enjoying himself at the festival. "But the food is good."

"That's good then," Himuro said. Seeing some of his friends take off to go see a show in the school's auditorium, he waved to Murasakibara. "See you later, Atsushi."

Murasakibara waved back. "Goodbye, Muro-chin."

The Miracles ended up staying on the roof for hours on end. When the bell rung to signal the end of a normal school day, Akashi was half glad that he had the sense to cancel practice for the day. The pool was simply to refreshing to leave now. The other Miracles agreed.

The festival soon came to an end for the day, and the group of seven were very tired when some teachers came to the rooftop to force them all to leave. Kuroko was sluggishly walking down the stairs, while Aomine was practically sleepwalking. Kise was making sure that the ace didn't walk into a wall, because it would be tragic and problematic if he did. Kise's date had left at the end of the school day, and to be honest, Kise was glad when she left.

"She's not my type," Kise explained. "I found that out today. She's really clingy, and seems to be eating my wallet."

"Is a wallet even tasty?" Murasakibara asked, chomping on a plate of riceballs that he bought from a food stall. "My riceballs are tasty."

"I don't think they are, Mukkun," Momoi replied. "I think you'd rather eat the riceballs."

"Sacchin's so smart," Murasakibara complimented. "She wouldn't make me eat ridiculous things." Mentally, Midorima thought that he was insane in the first place for even thinking that he could eat a wallet.

* * *

The next day was the basketball exhibition. Akashi, for the first half hour, was drilling everyone in doing warmups. The first hour or so of the morning (not including warmups) was dedicated to watching third and second strings play a match, and then the real champions (first string) would come out and play. The last hour was used for anyone who wanted to play basketball, and the Miracles would either play with or against them. Akashi thought it was a) fair, and b) entertaining on all sides. No one disagreed with him.

Since the Inter High was in full swing at the moment, Akashi decided to announce to the entire community watching the exhibition how Teiko had quickly risen to the top of their prefecture. Having won the championship league, they were in for Nationals beginning next month. Everyone clapped at the announcement, cheering about how their school would triumph at Nationals once again. It would mean a second consecutive win if Teiko won Nationals.

The third string versus second string match commenced, and no one was surprised that second string had beaten the third. The people that ended up on third string usually were people who didn't have the fundamentals necessary to get in second or even first string. When the second string won, they rejoiced in their win. The managers hurried them up to finish ritual so they could wipe off the court for the first string versus Generation of Miracles match.

It had been a thrilling match for the Miracles, save for Aomine. The first string's reserve power forwards was unable to close the skill gap between themselves and Aomine, so Aomine was literally scoring point after point for the Generation of Miracles. Akashi had sent ball after ball towards him, and Kuroko had redirected every ball to Aomine. Since the Miracles were up against people who were more knowledgeable about their abilities, they decided to use every card they had in their possession in order to secure victory. Of course, they won.

"That was a good game, Kurokocchi!" Kise squealed in the locker room, squishing Kuroko as much as he could. Kuroko complained about his inability to breathe, and Akashi sent the blonde boy death glares. If looks could kill, Kise would be on the floor, unmoving.

"In fact, well done," MIdorima commented, a small smile tugging on his lips. Kise let go of Kuroko to hug Midorima. The green haired tsundere moved out of the way sharply so that Kise would not hug him. Instead, Kise went flying into a locker door.

"Ow! That hurt, Midorimacchi," Kise whimpered. Midorima didn't pay him attention, as he grabbed his lucky item and walked out of the locker room.

Murasakibara was sitting on the bench inside the locker room, staring at his hands. Having scored about thirty points in their favor, he was wondering if something remarkable was happening to him. Usually the number of points he scored for the team was around twenty, just barely making it past the quota. Now, it felt like he could make basket after basket, and defeat anyone in his path.

Akashi glanced at his center, worried. "Is there something bothering you, Murasakibara?" he inquired.

Murasakibara turned to face his captain. "Aka-chin, lately I've been feeling like I'm getting stronger."

Akashi didn't think much of it. The others had been noticing their drastic improvements lately as well, but weren't bothered by it. Instead, they liked having more power and not being weak like they once were. "That's good, Murasakibara. Keep getting stronger."

"Okay, Aka-chin," Murasakibara answered. Since he had already changed out of his jersey already, he slipped out of the locker room, not noticing the look Kuroko was giving him.

Kuroko suspected something very, very wrong was happening in front of his eyes, and he vowed to figure out what it was.

* * *

The third day was the last day of the festival, which meant that tonight, the school administration would be shooting up fireworks to properly end the festival. Excited, everyone was chattering with anyone and everyone around them. Most people had a date to the fireworks; the hard part was finding a good spot to view the show.

"Akashi-kun," Kuroko began, emptying out his school bag, "I cannot find my tie." He looked at Akashi, panic and worry set in his eyes.

Akashi slowly removed his tie from his uniform. "Borrow this for today," he said. "I can go without it."

Kuroko glanced at the tie, then back at Akashi. "Are you sure, Akashi-kun? Wouldn't you get in trouble?"

Akashi smirked. "I'm the student council president, remember? I can pull some strings in my favor."

Kuroko raised an eyebrow. "Shouldn't the student council president be in uniform, setting the standard for everyone at Teiko?" he asked teasingly. Akashi rolled his eyes, resisting the sudden urge he had to do more illicit things with him. They weren't dating officially, so he couldn't make scandalous moves.

"Don't worry about it," Akashi smiled, erasing all worries Kuroko had before. "I'll handle it."

"Whatever you say, Akashi-kun," Kuroko said.

Kuroko put on Akashi's tie, letting Akashi deal with the fact that he had no tie. He muttered a small thank you out of gratefulness. Akashi pretended not to hear it; he didn't need gratitude for a small deed. However, Kuroko's eyes widened when Akashi magically pulled out another tie from his school bag and quickly tied it on his uniform.

"Now I'm not out of uniform, Kuroko," Akashi said.

Kuroko had half a mind to smack his forehead with the palm of his hand. "Akashi, you can be very, very stupid sometimes." Akashi did not ask for more clarification; in fact, he knew what he was doing.

Kuroko later disappeared (using Misdirection and somehow getting past Akashi's stare) to meet up with his homeroom class. They were performing today, and their performance was scheduled in the afternoon. Nonetheless, he had to show up sometime in the morning to be dressed and put in full guy makeup. Plus, their class representative was already on edge and wanted a run through of the script before the actual performance. Kuroko found her as maybe too uptight.

Scurrying down the hallway, he almost bumped into a group of girls. Kuroko quickly apologized, but one of them grabbed Kuroko's wrist. The grip was strong and tight, so he could not worm his way out of it.

Araki's facial expression was unhappy and unamused. Her arms were crossed on her chest. Two of her minions were standing directly behind her, like a posse. Another girl, Aida Riko, had her hand firmly grasped on Kuroko's wrist.

Araki stared Kuroko down. Kuroko refused to let fear get the best of him, though. "Weren't you at the pool house with Akashi the other day?"

Kuroko was taken aback. This was an odd question to ask. "Yes," he responded.

Araki didn't hesitate. "Are you together?" She sounded angry, as if Kuroko was the reason he left her. This, of course, was partially true, but Akashi refused to hear any of it when Kuroko had adamantly blamed himself for their breakup.

Kuroko shook his head. No matter what they had looked like earlier, they were not together romantically. Their relationship was purely platonic. "No, we're just friends, Araki-san."

Araki got scary close in front of Kuroko's face, implying that she was threatening him. "Then you'll stay away from him, right? I don't want to see you with him." It took so much strength for Kuroko to not avert his gaze to the ground. Here he was, being belittled by a girl, but he couldn't do anything about it.

Araki contemplated that after scaring the poor kid, she could just walk away and move on with her life. However, the red pin on Kuroko's tie was eye catching, and only one person in the entire school was allowed to have said pin on their tie. Araki narrowed her eyes at it, then looked at Kuroko suspiciously.

Grabbing Kuroko by the collar, she pulled him a mere inch away from her face. "That tie," she spat angrily, "Where did you get it? Did you steal it, you retarded piece of crap?"

Kuroko had no words, especially for a girl who resorted to foul language to express her jealousy. To be honest, Kuroko almost broke down at the choice of words. They were the better choice words out of the selection, but that did not mean that it didn't hurt Kuroko just as much. The pang that shot through his chest ached in pain as the words repeatedly swam through his mind.

Someone slapped the cheek of Araki's face. Kuroko knew this, for through the teary eyes he saw a hand whip across her face. Araki's face moved in the direction of the slap. Kuroko was almost happy that Araki got what she rightfully deserved, though he would never do that to a girl.

"Momoi-san?" Kuroko asked, bewildered by the sight of her pink hair and angry eyes turned at another girl.

"What are you doing to Tetsu-kun?" Momoi half shouted at the group of girls. "You don't have the right to interfere with his personal life, so why are you doing this?"

Before Araki or her minions could respond, Momoi wrenched Aida's hand off of Kuroko and took him away from the scene. She hurried through the hallways, trying to reach the one safe place the Miracles have always prided themselves on - the basketball court. Momoi knew that Kuroko behind her was trying his best to not spill tears (and ruin his nonexistent reputation), but the sooner they reached the gym, the better for both of them.

Momoi reached the gym, and pulled the door open. Kuroko ambled inside. Having seen Momoi's defense against Araki and her clique, he felt a little better now. He felt less alone, less afraid that he would have to take her on himself. Kuroko didn't have to pretend now that everything was alright too.

"Tetsu-kun," Momoi said in a soft, gentle voice, "Are you okay?"

Kuroko nodded, sniffling a little. "Yes. Thank you, Momoi-san."

Momoi wiped Kuroko's remaining tears with a tissue she found in her skirt pocket. Disposing of the wet tissue in the garbage can, she held Kuroko's hand as they left the gym. Kuroko looked down at their intertwined fingers, but Momoi merely winked and reassured him that it would be okay for now.

"Akashi-kun's tie fits you nicely, Tetsu-kun," she complimented. "I'm glad you forgot your tie this morning."

Kuroko blushed. "Thank you, Momoi-san.I guess it's somewhere in my room, but I couldn't seem to find it anywhere."

Momoi giggled. "You should keep Akashi-kun's tie."

Kuroko shook his head, disagreeing. "It's Akashi-kun's, Momoi-san. Also, it would be mean to take his possessions without telling him, and I'm not the student council president. I don't deserve to wear this."

Momoi fumbled with the tie on Kuroko's neck, detaching the red pin from the tie. Kuroko stared at the red pin. "Now it's just a regular school tie. You can wear Akashi-kun's tie forever!"

Kuroko mentally gave a sigh. Momoi was not budging from her position. "At least give Akashi-kun the pin back."

At that moment, Akashi had been walking by, and he spotted Momoi and Kuroko speaking to each other in an empty hallway. Momoi's fingers tightly held the red pin, right where Kuroko's line of sight was. Akashi glanced at clock hanging on the wall. It read 3:47, which meant that if Akashi wanted a spot next to Kuroko when the celebration began tonight, he would have to act fast. Making a quick detour from his original destination, he sauntered over to the duo.

Kuroko saw Akashi out of the corner of his eye and spoke first. "Akashi-kun, hello."

"Hello, Kuroko," Akashi said coolly. Eyeing the red pin in Momoi's hand, he asked, "Why is the pin removed from the tie?"

Momoi offered it up to Akashi. "Tetsu-kun thinks that you should at least wear your pin," Momoi replied. "Put it on your tie, Akashi-kun."

Akashi supposed that he did not have much of a choice. Originally, he wasn't planning on taking the red pin back for the day, since Kuroko was wearing his normal school tie. However, due to the circumstances, his red pin was detached from his tie, Akashi had to take the pin. The red pin was important to student council presidents at Teiko High School because it not only signified their prestigious position, but it allowed him/her to have free lunches at school and a skip day per month. Akashi didn't mind having the privileges to use, but he could go without them. He had more than enough money to spend on his debit card, and he enjoyed learning enough to attend school.

Akashi accepted the red pin, saying a small thank you to both Momoi and Kuroko. He attached it to his blue tie. Kuroko was satisfied with this; now, Akashi was officially a student council president.

Momoi looked at the both of them. Remembering her letter (the one sitting inside of her blazer, away from prying eyes like the Miracles'), she said her goodbyes to the two of them and quickly fled from the scene. As she ran to find Aomine Daiki, a small, devious smile was forming on her lips.

 _June 24: Satsuki, you treasure Tetsu-kun a lot, and Tetsu-kun treasures you too. Make sure he's always happy, and be grateful for him, because he will be an important person in more ways than one._

Meanwhile, back in the empty hallway, Akashi took Kuroko's hand and brought the shadow closer to him. Kuroko was baffled by the sudden gesture and turned to face Akashi, about to question his actions.

"Are you questioning me, Kuroko?" Akashi asked, a tiny glint of gold flashing in his eye.

"Of course not, Akashi-kun," Kuroko denied.

Akashi didn't believe the lie. "Kuroko Tetsuya, please wait for me after the festival ends," he said, and Kuroko almost thought for a second that this wasn't a request, but an order. "Let's go see the celebration together." His fingers were locked with Kuroko's, and he was fiddling with them.

Kuroko didn't hesitate for a moment. "Yes," Kuroko replied, a smile on his lips. "Let's go watch the fireworks together, Akashi-kun." A blush appeared on his cheeks, but this time, Kuroko didn't bother to hide it.

* * *

The most stupidest thing about the cultural festival, in Aomine's opinion, was the Mister and Miss Teiko contest. It was basically a popularity contest about who was the prettiest and most handsome person in the school. For this reason, Aomine hated it with every fiber of his being, not that he cared.

From the winner's stage, Aomine watched as Kise Ryota accepted a bouquet of flowers and a huge box from the vice principal. Of course, the model had willingly signed up for the contest when he learned about the contest. He had won the past two years, and this year was no different. Kise waved happily to his fans in the crowd, who were all screaming over him. Aomine let out a 'tch' sound, angry that they got more attention than he did.

"You're just jealous, Aomine-kun," Momoi said, "that Ki-kun is getting more attention than you are."

Aomine jumped back, shocked at her presence. "Shut up, Satsuki," he muttered. He did not need her to reiterate what his brain was practically telling him already.

On the stage, Araki Masako was busy accepting her bouquet of flowers and prize box. Kise's fans quickly moved on from him and cheered for Araki, congratulating her on her victory for the second year in a row. By now, Kise has had enough of Araki, and stepped off stage to let her bask in her glory. Kise didn't want to be even two feet near her, not after what happened last month.

Now on ground level with everyone else, Kise scoured the audience for anyone that he at least remotely knew (other than his annoying fans). Spotting Aomine standing next to Momoi in the back, Kise jogged to meet up with them. Aomine's face was in a permanent scowl, and Momoi was leading him out of the room.

Panting, Kise called out for them. "Aominecchi! Momoicchi!"

Aomine spun around, seeing Kise's bright, grinning face making his way towards him. He frowned, wondering what the blonde had to say now.

Kise dumped the package onto Aomine. "Help me carry this, Aominecchi, it's so heavy."

Aomine glared at him. "What makes you think I can carry it?"

"Your hands were free," Kise shrugged. "Do you like my roses? They smell so good!" Momoi agreed, sniffing the flowers repeatedly. Aomine flinched, not even going to confirm or deny Kise's statements.

"Let's go, Kise," was all Aomine said. Overall, he just wanted to get out of there before Araki began her dumb, long, and fake speech that she prepared for the audience. Aomine had no intention of vomiting today.

In Kise's classroom, the three of them found most of the class tearing down the runway. The festival was practically over at that point, since nobody was hanging around to watch what's left. Tonight, the celebration would begin, complete with fireworks, and in order to attend, the place must be cleared of anything left from the festival. In other words, it was clean up time.

"Hey!" Kise cheered from the doorway, waving to the few girls inside. "I brought the prize!"

"Did you?" one girl asked. "Let's unwrap it!" The class chorused their agreement.

One of the guys in the class used their blade to open up the box, and the girls grabbed their package of juice. Yes, the classroom prize for winning the Mister and Miss Teiko contest was juice to share. It was incredibly lame, but well worth it when it was time to clean up. Most of their classmates were thirsty after three days of hard work and fun.

Kise thrust two juice boxes into his friends' arms. "We're going to have leftovers anyways, so have some." Aomine grunted a thank you to the blonde. Momoi accepted the drink, taking a huge sip out of it.

Midorima walked into Kise's classroom with Murasakibara in tow. "A delivery for you, nanodayo." Before anyone could react, Midorima held Momoi firmly by the collar of her uniform and dragged her down the hall to their classroom, muttering something about "responsibility for the class." Kise snickered.

Murasakibara grabbed one of the juice boxes. "Thank you, Kise-chin." Then, he retreated to a corner of the classroom, helping a couple of the smaller guys take down some fabric from the walls.

"See you tonight, Kise," Aomine said gruffly, giving the blonde a wave as he left the classroom. Kise bidded farewell to the ace, hoping to see him tonight at the celebration.

When Aomine left, Kise felt incomplete, like a piece of him was missing. He didn't bother with the empty feeling, however, and helped a few girls put the desks back in order.

* * *

Akashi and Kuroko headed upstairs to the rooftop. In his hand, Akashi was jingling the keys to the door. Being the student council president had its perks, he supposed. Right now, he was focusing on his little outing with Kuroko.

Kuroko was silent the entire way up to the rooftop. Both boys were dressed in their swim trunks, eager to use the pool as they watched the fireworks that night. The first round of the celebration had already begun, food and drinks plenty to go around. Akashi had his vice president look over the affair as the administration began preparing for the fireworks.

Akashi opened up the door to the rooftop, locking the door shut behind him after he and Kuroko got through the door. No one would interrupt their date tonight, not even Araki Masako. Kuroko immediately stripped off his shirt and dived into the pool without a second though. Akashi followed suit.

After splashing around in the water for a bit, Akashi got out of the water. Blowing up two inflatable tubes, he threw them both into the water. Kuroko climbed onto one of them. Akashi descended back into the water, but not without first grabbing the vanilla milkshake off the table beside the pool. Kuroko smiled serenely when given the milkshake.

"Well done over the past two days, Kuroko," Akashi thanked. "The festival was a success."

"Of course, Akashi-kun," Kuroko replied after sipping the milkshake. "But what's with the two straws?"

Akashi smirked and put his lips around the other straw. "Perhaps I wanted some of the milkshake too, but didn't have the funds necessary to purchase a second."

Kuroko hid his surprise from Akashi. Not only did Akashi fib (Kuroko couldn't point it out, otherwise he'd be a hypocrite), but Kuroko was wondering if this was what people called sharing saliva through a drink. It wasn't like an indirect kiss, but surely they were sharing some saliva. Kuroko wasn't bothered by it, though, and neither was Akashi. The teal haired shadow believed that Akashi had thought this through when he set this up.

Kuroko looked straight into Akashi's eyes. "Akashi-kun, that was the worst lie you've ever come up with," he said bluntly.

"Is it? How observant of you," Akashi replied. "Although yours isn't much better."

Kuroko winced. "I don't believe that is particularly mentionable, Akashi-kun." Code for 'don't you dare continue the conversation from there, Akashi-kun.'

Akashi got the hint. "Perhaps."

There was awkward silence between the two. Kuroko had never been a sociable person, and Akashi, for once in his life, didn't know how to proceed with the conversation now that it had taken an awkward turn. Kuroko continued to sip at the milkshake in his hands. Akashi was done with sweet things for the night. The vanilla milkshake was too unhealthy for him to consume a large amount of.

Kuroko, now finished with the milkshake, looked around the pool for one in sight. There was none to be seen anywhere. Akashi told him it was okay to wait to throw it out, since the fireworks would begin soon. Kuroko insisted on throwing it out now, since he had an urge to use the bathroom at the same time. Reluctantly, Akashi handed him the rooftop key so that he could come back. Kuroko thanked him and dashed away, leaving Akashi to stare at the night stars by himself.

Kuroko quickly used the toilet and washed his hands. He found a trash can in the bathroom and tossed the empty cup in there. As he left the bathroom, he ran into someone in the hallway, right when he wasn't focusing on his misdirection.

"Did someone just bump into me?" Aida Riko asked, brushing off the dirt on her shoulder.

Araki Masako scanned the hall, looking for a ghost that had walked straight past them. Seeing a foot turn a corner, she ran down the hall to catch up with the invisible person. She had a strange suspicion of what she just saw, and had a sudden intuition of who it was. A devilish smile appeared on her face, and she formulated a plan.

Grabbing a hold of Kuroko's collar, she brought him closer to her. "Stupid junior, come back here. I need your help."

Kuroko didn't want to turn around. Mentally, he was panicking because he knew exactly who he ran into, and somehow, he had incurred their wrath (again). He wanted to go back to the rooftop, back to where it's safe, back to Akashi. However, he was caught up in the hall, because now Araki was going to do something, and he didn't know what horrors she had concocted, and oh my, he needed to run.

"Kurokocchi!" Kise called out from the bottom of the stairs, bringing Kuroko out of his trance. His gaze met Araki's, and his eyes narrowed. "Are they bullying you?" he asked calmly.

Kuroko was immediately glad that Kise had been there at the bottom of the stairs when he was. He thought he might have cracked if he wasn't. "No," he answered truthfully. "She needed help, that's all."

Kise's eyes locked dead on with Kuroko's. He broke his gaze at Kuroko to glare at Araki. Grabbing Kuroko by the hand, he jerked him away from her. "I'll take care of it, Kurokocchi." Kuroko could not believe that for once, Kise could be deadly serious. He nodded to him, and headed back upstairs with the keys to the rooftop in his pocket.

When Kuroko had left their sight, Kise looked at the girls. "Is there something I can help you with, Araki Masako?" Kise pronounced her name like it was poison in his mouth and very, very slowly.

Araki shook her head. Her plan had barely begun and already failed. Luckily, she had a backup plan in the works right now, and she was going to execute it tonight. Smiling, she shook her head. "I'm sorry, Kise-kun, but I overestimated things. I won't be needing any more help."

Kise smiled back at her. "That's fantastic. Enjoy the fireworks tonight!" Then he descended back down the stairs, leaving her alone with her group.

Araki Masako's devilish smirk had yet to leave her face.

* * *

The fireworks were bright and beautiful in the night sky. Akashi saw red, orange, all the colors in the rainbow in every firework spark that glowed. They had begun with the absence of Kuroko, but Akashi, slightly worried about his shadow, still managed to revel in the beauty of the fireworks. The loud booms in the sky to the shining artificial lights in the sky were wonderful.

Akashi heard a click in the doorknob, and from his peripheral vision, he saw Kuroko open the door. Kuroko ventured next to Akashi and sat down in the floatie, his feet dangling in the pool water. Together, they watched the fireworks in silence, fingers lingering close to each other but rarely touching.

All too quickly, the fireworks ceased. Akashi's heart rate began to slow down; the fast paced speed of the explosions were taking a toll whenever they came with their sonic booms. Kuroko was smiling serenely, gazing at the stars in the sky. Akashi glanced over to see his peaceful face as he counted the stars in the sky (an impossible task).

"The stars are beautiful tonight, Akashi-kun," Kuroko said out of the blue.

Akashi had to agree. The stars were indeed beautiful tonight. "Yes, I suppose they are."

Kuroko brought his floatie closer to Akashi's, close enough for the two floaties to touch one another. Akashi looked at the shadow, curious as to what he might do. He noticed his pink face, wondering if the boy was getting sick out here. It would be a shame if he did. Little did he know that his face was pink because he was trying not to blush in front of Akashi.

"Akashi-kun, would you ever confess to anyone?" Kuroko asked out of nowhere. Frankly, it startled Akashi, and he replied a crisp no. "Even if you loved a person enough that you couldn't live with them in your life?"

Akashi didn't change his answer. "I think it is natural for girls to confess to me first. However, if the need arises, I would give it a thought."

"Akashi-kun, by that answer, you would end up as the girl in the relationship."

"I refuse to be seen as such, Kuroko."

Kuroko thought about his next question. "Then Akashi-kun, who would you confess to?" he asked, a tiny smile on his face. If Akashi didn't know better, he would have thought Kuroko was trying to provoke something in him.

"Out of everyone that we know?" Akashi asked, and Kuroko nodded. "I suppose I would confess to Midorima - " Kuroko let out a small 'oh', as if he was disappointed by Akashi's response. It was small enough that it slipped by Akashi's notice. " - as a friend. I don't believe our families would be pleased if we came out as gay."

"Then, as a lover?" Kuroko inquired.

Akashi hesitated with his response. "Out of the Generation of Miracles, I would confess to you in a romantic sense."

Kuroko's mouth turned wide into a grin. He was happy, no, happiness was pouring out of him. All Kuroko could feel was the fast thumping of his heart when Akashi said that, as if Akashi had indeed loved him like that. His cheeks were flushed red, but he didn't mind. Akashi had said that he would confess to him. "I'm happy, Akashi-kun."

Akashi smiled as well, and Kuroko noticed the redness on his cheeks. "I'm happy as well, Kuroko," he replied, and Kuroko could feel the happiness through his words.

The fireworks restarted right when Akashi said his line, and Kuroko and Akashi both watched the fireworks in bliss. Akashi's hand found its way to Kuroko's, and surprisingly enough, Kuroko failed to notice it through his own happy thoughts and feelings. Together, they held hands as the fireworks kept going for a another few minutes.

"Thank you for coming today," Akashi whispered softly to Kuroko. "I'm glad we watched the fireworks together. I will never forget today."

"Today was a complete happiness day," Kuroko replied, a smile still prominent on his lips. "Thank you for watching the fireworks with me."

The celebration finally ended, and Akashi and Kuroko left the pool dripping wet. Pulling on a shirt and not bothering to change into their uniforms, they headed downstairs to find the rest of the Miracles. Akashi knew that the rest of them would be waiting at the main entrance in the next few minutes, so he hurried Kuroko along so that they wouldn't be late.

The two of them reached the entrance within minutes, but they were the last to arrive. The rest of the Generation of Miracles were already waiting for them, including a familiar black haired boy. His hand was entwined with Midorima's, and it did not take Akashi and Kuroko long to put the pieces together.

"Congratulations Midorima-kun, Takao-kun," Kuroko said to the new couple.

Takao replied a thank you, while Midorima merely blushed furiously. The shooter had always been awful with words and emotions, so it was quite a surprise to everyone that they had gotten together. Nonetheless, the Miracles all supported them as a couple, since it was clear to them how much Takao had an effect on Midorima.

"Where is Kise?" Akashi said, scanning the group. No one had noticed when the blonde haired guy slipped away (or if he even showed up in the first place).

Nearby, the Miracles noticed a familiar tall blonde haired boy at the end of the hall, arguing with a girl. Murasakibara recognized her as the girl who was going to the festival with Kise. He urged the Miracles to go spy on the conversation, noticing that the situation was turning dry and against Kise.

Sneaking closer, Kuroko, the invisible phantom of the group, listened in to the entire conversation. Though he would normally not do such an act, he did it anyways since he himself believed that Kise was in danger. If you asked him, he would say it was a feeling in his gut.

"We were not dating in the first place, senpai," Kise stated. "And I never asked you to the fireworks. I was free to hang out however I wanted to during that time."

The girl huffed. It seemed like she wasn't going to make Kise guilty of what he did. "Okay," she said, pretending to accept it. Instead, she was resorting to plan Z. "You know what? I didn't even want to go with you to see the fireworks. Shuuzo was more than willing to go with me. And while we're on the subject, I never liked you like that, Ryota-kun."

Kise let out a sharp hiss, and Kuroko knew that this was heading dangerously south really quick. As much as Kuroko wanted to drag him away, he could not. One, he was not supposed to be there, and two, he believed that this might be something that's on her chest, and Kise should listen to the entire speech.

The girl continued. "I didn't reject you because you were the most popular boy, and I can't say say no to him. So I decided to play you, instead of you playing me. Ryota-kun, I never once thought that you were beautiful or pretty. Those were lies for me to keep my popularity spot. As a matter of fact, I think you're ugly and fat, and unworthy of being a model. You're despicable, Ryota, and I never, ever want to see your piece of shit face ever again." She slapped Kise. "Get out of my sight, and don't walk by me ever again." Then, she waltzed away, as if nothing happened between them.

Kise didn't move for minutes on end, not even when the Miracles all gathered around him protectively, as if Kise was a broken doll that seeked shelter.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

According to the polls, most of you had Kise in last place, so I don't feel too bad for hurting my precious like this. Anyways, I hope you all liked the AkaKuro and the little bits of AoKise, MidoTaka, and MuraHimu in here! I'm really excited for the next couple chapters, and I hope you all are too. Don't forget to review & vote in the poll on my profile!


	8. letter eight

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

First of all, I would like to deeply apologize for the tardiness of this chapter (and how dumb and short it is too). Real life is starting to catch up with me, and this is one of the worst times to write a psychological/emotional fanfiction. However, I guess this chapter ended up leaving out a lot of the emotional aspect. Lucky me, I guess. However, with the stuff I need to do now, it'll be increasingly hard to update this fic as much as I intended. I'll always update on days close to Wednesdays, and with luck, updates shouldn't be more than two weeks apart.

I have said it before on other sites and I might have said it here as well, but this is the chapter of the first reveal since Momoi Satsuki! Many of you have been anxiously awaiting for this chapter, and some of you even correctly identified the name of the person who would be revealed. I was shocked - is my fic that predictable? I suppose I shall mix it up a little bit. Anyways, noticing the content of this chapter, some of you might also be able to predict the events of the next couple chapters, since I am following the Teiko arc right now.

I am blessed to have 36 favorites & 57 follows on this fic, thank you so much! Let's hit 100 follows and 50 favorites soon, okay? Also, your reviews are outstanding, keep up the great work!

*Psychological Condition: Self Esteem, Depression

* * *

 **JUNE 30**

The quarterfinals of the Inter High were going to begin at any given moment. Currently, Akashi Seijuro had the Miracles rounded up on the bench, still debating on Teiko's starting members. Today's match was against Shutoku High, which was a powerhouse school in basketball. Akashi was forced to take this match seriously.

Running through the best possible options he could, he finally came up with a starting list. "Takao Kazunari. Midorima Shintaro. Aomine Daiki. Murasakibara Atsushi. Kise Ryota. You all will be starting this match. Good luck."

The five of them bowed to the others on the bench and made their way onto the court. All of the members by now were warmed up for the match, so now with Shutoku's starting lineup on the court as well, it was time for the match to begin. The whistle blew, and the ten players bowed to each other. The coach tossed the ball into the air, and thus the match began.

Murasakibara, with his tall height, had no problem taking the ball first and dribbling it down the court. He ended up making the shot himself as well with the assistance of Thor's Hammer. The crowd was amazed by his new skill, oohing and aahing at the sight of it.

Akashi, sitting on the bench, smirked at the reaction. He had liked the skill as well, and now Murasakibara was putting it to good use. He believed that it added firepower to his own strength, and thus making Murasakibara a stronger player than he already was. With this, Murasakibara was almost impossible to stop.

Kuroko, on the other hand, was not pleased with the action, but refused to voice his opinions on it.

Teiko quickly took the first quarter, and the first time out came from Shutoku. Their coach had been unable to find a fault in their play, so he called a timeout so that the players could take a breather. The scoreboard read 27-4.

When the timeout was called, Aomine headed for the bench immediately. He had scored almost half the points Teiko had so far, and Shutoku didn't look like they were going to give up yet. Aomine was only slightly happy with that; he knew that later on, they would end up with defeated faces before the game ended for real. Meanwhile, Takao was slapping Midorima's back, and Murasakibara was already eating his red bean cakes.

"They seem to be well acquainted with your Hawk Eye, Takao," Akashi said after going through his observations. "Therefore, I'd like you to sit on the bench for the next quarter. Midorima, you can join him, and Himuro Tatsuya will take your place."

"Whatever is best for the team, nanodayo," Midorima said, but Takao noticed a slight click of his tongue, made in disapproval since he would be benched.

"Kise, you're not mentally in the game either," Akashi pointed out. Kise, to everyone's surprise, didn't say anything in response. "Switch with Kuroko."

Coach Shirogane raised his hand. "Ah, Akashi-kun, if I may." Akashi nodded. "I'd like a word with Aomine-kun, so can we hold off the Kise switch for a couple minutes?"

Akashi thought about it for a moment, then agreed. He redirected Kuroko to take Aomine's spot for the time being. To himself, Akashi didn't have the heart to argue against his coach. He would much rather avoid an argument with him at all costs. The whistle sounded, and the five members enter the court.

"There is something I have to apologize to you about," Coach Shirogane started, and Aomine turned his head to look at him. "I had immediately realized you had a tremendous amount of potential talent. I also knew you loved basketball more than anyone else, and that if your talent was to come to fruition, that you would be like how you are now. Despite realizing this, I didn't say anything. How I wished to see the future with your fully talented self having won over how you would feel." Aomine stared at the ground, not daring to meet the coach's eyes. "That is why I apologize, and I beg you, don't waste your talent. Your distress isn't something that can be solved immediately. However, there is a chance that it will be solved someday. Don't abandon it. I won't say that it you don't give up, you'll definitely make it. But if you do give up, there will be nothing left."

Aomine's round eyes widened as he met the faraway look in Coach Shirogane's eyes. "Wait, that line - "

With a twinkle in his eye, the coach smiled and stood up. "Yup. Stole it."

Aomine leaned back in horror. "That means you were listening?" Knowing that he couldn't take back his words, he took his own advice. "All right."

Coach Shirogane clapped the tanned ace on the back and gave him the number stick to substitute a player out. Aomine stripped off his sweatpants and sweatshirt, ready to go back in the game with a renewed spirit.

Meanwhile, on the court, Akashi was slowly lessening the amount of times he would pass to Kuroko. These days, the redhead captain had found it useless to pass to the shadow, since their opponents were not playing to their full strength. Actually, the opposite seemed to be happening. The opponent would rather give up and forfeit the victory to Teiko instead of fighting for their win. Teiko's players were slightly saddened by the lack of energy the opponent was giving, but they didn't care at all how the others felt.

Otsubo, trying to keep the fighting spirit up, clapped the Shutoku regulars on the back. "Get a grip, will you? Read the words over there!" he said, pointing to the Shutoku banner. The orange banner read: Unyielding Tenacity.

Miyaji Kiyoshi, one of the Shutoku players, glanced over there and read the words on the banner. Soon, he felt a refreshing sense of wanting to win, believing that even if they lost, they would not go down without a fight.

"This game isn't locked down yet," he whispered. "We're going to play our best and beat you!" he declared. Otsubo smiled, glad that his fellow third year found the strength and resolve to keep playing.

Akashi formed a devious smile on his face, clearly finding some reason to keep playing and pressuring the other team in their cheers. Kuroko looked over at him, skeptical of anything he could be planning.

However, the evil glint in Akashi's right eye disappeared as fast as it came, and Akashi narrowed his eyes, ready to take on the new Shutoku team. He sent a ball flying to Kuroko, and the shadow redirected it over to Midorima, who was in the most ideal spot for a basket. The green haired shooter sunk it right through the net, earning another three points for Teiko. The scoreboard now read 53-12, in Teiko's favor.

Halftime began when the buzzer rang, and the Teiko basketball team quickly gathered in the locker room. Akashi began to go over new strategies to help the team win, while Coach Shirogane just sat in the corner, nodding along with whatever he was saying. Most of the players were not paying attention; they were sharing sour lemons and resting in order to recover their lost stamina.

Kise sat in another corner, staring at his phone as he scrolled through Twitter. Nearby was Kuroko, who was tending to the blonde. Since the recent incident with his date, Kuroko rarely let Kise out of his sight. He knew the blonde was a delicate person, and her comments had sent him over the edge more than once.

"Kise-kun, please focus on the game," Kuroko said gently, putting a towel on his head. Kise nodded, tucking the phone away and wiping off the sweat (or tears?) off of his face. Kuroko watched him, a knowing look in his eyes.

"Anyone care to repeat the strategies I just said?" Akashi asked, arms crossed across his chest. He had known that nobody was listening, hence why he asked for someone to repeat his words.

Midorima, for the sake of the group, repeated Akashi's words, and Akashi nodded, glad to see that at least one person paid him enough attention. Some of the Miracles did not care; winning was essentially engrained into their very soul. To win was just as easy as their kanji alphabet by now.

On the court during the second half of the match, the Miracles only enacted one of Akashi's plans: the plan of endurance. Basically, it meant that both shooting guards on the teams would be facing each other in a round off to see who would break first due to their lack of endurance. Midorima had been working for some time to improve his endurance, so Akashi placed his faith in him.

By the end of the third quarter, both shooting guards' heart rate was beating rapidly. Midorima was gasping for breath; he didn't believe it would be this taxing on him. However, he would continue to believe in fate and hard work, as he shot another basket into the hoop. The other shooting guard, failing in blocking his abnormally high shots, fell to the ground in defeat.

Kuroko looked around at the players in orange. Most of them were out of breath, out of stamina, and in dire need of some rest. However, Teiko had some strength left in them to keep going. Was it because they were winning? Was it because Aomine and Kise wasn't putting their all into the game? Was it because of Akashi's plan?

Kuroko wondered if there was more to the plan than he had originally thought.

The end of the match came as quickly as it could. Teiko and Shutoku bowed to each other, with Shutoku resolving to beat them at the Winter Cup. Akashi thanked them for a good match and hoped to see them dominate the Winter Cup as much as they could.

"Will we see them in the Winter Cup, Akashi-kun?" Kuroko asked.

"Yes, I believe so. They do not look the type to be discouraged so easily," Akashi mused. "Now come. We must leave soon. I highly doubt many of our first string members would like to be bombarded with reporters." Kuroko agreed, and hastened his pace to match Akashi as much as he could.

* * *

The two coaches met each other in the head coach's office that evening, with Coach Shirogane sitting behind the desk. The grave look on his face told Coach Sanada that this was a serious matter.

"As long as those boys, the Generation of Miracles, are with us - " Sanada started.

"We'll see about that," Coach Shirogane said. "On the contrary, I'm worried. Their powers are too great. In order to keep the team working together, we must follow them up even more." He coughed, trying to clear up his throat and lungs.

Sanada smiled. "Well, that will be all right. As long as you are around, I'm sure - "

At that moment, there was a large noise, as if something (or someone) had been knocked down. Sanada looked up to see an empty leather chair, and his eyes quickly darted to the side, seeing the head coach on the floor, unconscious. Hastily, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed the emergency number, unsure of how serious or life threatening this could be.

While the ambulance took their time to get to the high school, Sanada checked the head coach to ensure that he was indeed alive. He first checked for a pulse (there was one), which meant that his heart was still beating. He looked for any signs of him not breathing, and sure enough, his chest wasn't moving up or down. Unfortunately, Sanada's specialty was not sports medicine; he was not qualified to perform CPR on him.

Sanada had never wanted to curse his education more in his life.

When the ambulance came, they escorted the both of them to the hospital. One of the medics performed CPR, and when he was breathing again, he hooked the head coach up to breathing mask. Sanada was asked to sit in the back with him, answering questions that he could not possibly know about the coach.

"Any medical conditions you know of, sir?" a girl asked.

Sanada shrugged. The head coach kept his personal life separate from the court.

She looked up into his worried face and gave him a smile. "He'll be okay, I don't think it's life threatening, but we'll give him a proper check up and see what the problem is."

From the bottom of his heart, Sanada believed her.

* * *

Coach Sanada, now promoted to head coach of the Teiko basketball team, stood before the Generation of Miracles, wondering how in the world he was going to break it to them. Practice was long over, but he had asked all seven of them to stay behind for a team meeting. He stood motionless in front of the Miracles, hands folded in front of him.

Akashi had rounded up the Miracles after they had finished doing their stretches at the end of practice. "Is there something you would like to talk to us about, Coach?" he asked.

Sanada spoke. "As of last night, Coach Shirogane was taken to the hospital." This earned a few audible gasps from the group. Most of them were shocked; their scary, seemingly immobile and immortal coach had fallen ill. "It is not life threatening; however, he will not be able to return as the head coach. Therefore, I will take over as the head coach today." More gasps. "From tomorrow, we will resume the training menu that we've been using up until now. Got that?"

The Miracles understood, and showed it by nodding their heads. Coach Sanada dismissed them for the evening, and they all decided to venture off for the night. Kise was not in the mood to do anything, and Kuroko felt like if he didn't go home, something awful might happen. The instinctual voice in his conscious was telling him not to go anywhere.

In the locker room, it was silent. No one uttered a single word. Akashi didn't mind the silence; hell, he revelled in it. It gave him time to think, think of how the other basketball players might react when they learn of this new information. Plus, he was already thinking of schemes that he might be able to get away with, including finding where the former head coach was. With luck, it would be somewhere the Akashi Corporation has access to.

The Miracles slowly left the gym, one by one. No one Miracle was going home with another person, except Momoi and Aomine, since they lived nearby each other. Akashi headed home in his limousine, Kuroko walked home in the opposite direction, Midorima went home with Takao, who had been waiting patiently for him with the rickshaw. Murasakibara headed for the convenience store minutes after Aomine and Momoi departed, and Kise was last to go in his manager's vehicle.

"You have a modelling shoot in Kanegawa, Kise," Kasamatsu read off his schedule sheet. Noticing the lack of enthusiasm and how the blonde was just staring out of the window, he sighed. "You don't have to take this job if you don't want to."

"It's fine, Kasamatsu-san," he said in a bored tone. "I'll do it."

Kasamatsu groaned. "Dumbass, you obviously don't look and feel good. Maybe you should just take the next week off." He proceeded to flick Kise in the ear with his finger and thumb.

Kise refused to reply, resorting to staring out of the window. Kasamatsu Yukio sighed, letting him do what he wished. If he wanted to go to the shoot either way, then he would let him, even though his morals were screaming to not let him go. Kasamatsu believed that his current mood might affect his modelling shoot, but the reality was, Kise had never acted depressed before. In fact, the blonde had always been a happy ball of sunshine, even if he was annoying at times.

What he wouldn't do to get that Kise Ryota back.

The van arrived outside of the studio, and Kasamatsu escorted a now sleepy Kise inside. Fans were already gathered outside of the place, and they screamed and hollered when they saw him. Kise popped open one eye and gave them a small wave. The fangirls screamed and Kasamatsu, out of the corner of his eye, thought that one even got a nosebleed. How manly.

Inside the studio, Kise was paired with a male model named Moriyama Yoshitaka, a local model. Kise had to admit that he's got some good looks going for him, but of course, Kise was the more experienced and more famous model of the two. The two of them were escorted away to get their makeup done, and then to the modelling station.

The photographer offered the two of them some props, to which they both accepted (one more graciously than the other). They took separate photos first, and Moriyama went first with his beach ball and wide framed sunglasses. Kise followed after with a mask and a jack o lantern in his possession.

"Kise, tilt your head a little better. Be more sexier," the photographer said. Kise complied with his wishes, and the photographer snapped the photos.

Kasamatsu stood in the corner, watching the photographer adjust Kise's angle every couple seconds. Though the model himself looked flawless as usual and adorable, dare he say, Kasamatsu noticed one thing: the smile on his face was fake.

He narrowed his eyes, picking up one of the unedited photographs on the table and studying the face of Kise Ryota. Normally, when someone looked at one of his photos, there would be an aura of playfulness and playboy, but this time, Kasamatsu could only feel chills running down his back.

This business had to end somewhere, didn't it?

* * *

Momoi rolled over on the bed, reading today's letter again for what seemed like the millionth time. The letter wasn't special; she knew it was inevitable. The incident from the fireworks show had left Kise in a ruined state, and none of the Miracles were helping. In fact, it was more like the Miracles were breaking apart lately.

 _June 30: Teiko beats Shutoku and advances to the semifinals of the InterHigh. Your next opponent is Rakuzan High, the reigning emperor school of the basketball tournament. No change in Kise either._

The doorbell rang, pulling Momoi out of her thoughts. Wondering who was downstairs, she hurried to answer the door. Peering through the little eyehole to check who was outside, she saw a familiar tan skinned boy. Aomine Daiki was outside.

Momoi opened the door and closed it behind her. The summer heat was still lingering, even without the sun up high in the sky. Around her, the crickets were chirping to each other. Aomine was leaning on the railway, an embarrassed look on his face. Momoi wondered if Aomine was even at her house on his own terms.

"Dai-chan!" Momoi exclaimed, racing to hug him tightly. For her, she was ecstatic because he had acted so lethargic lately. Aomine, for once in his life, let her tackle him, too lazy to even fight her in this state.

"Satsuki, get off me," Aomine grunted as Momoi clung to him for what seemed like the next eternity. He picked the pink haired girl by the wrist and forced her off of him. "You rang me and didn't answer me. What's going on?" he asked.

Momoi was confused for a moment, then remembered that she had indeed dialed his number, but on accident. She began to wave off it off, saying that everything was okay for now and she was sorry for bothering him, but an idea struck her. However, could she trust him? Was Aomine the dead person? What if the future held Aomine six feet under?

"Satsuki?" Aomine asked, worried.

"Dai-chan," Momoi said softly. Aomine could have sworn that that was the first time she had ever used that soft voice on him. "Would you believe me if - "

Aomine silenced her with his right hand. He nudged her to go inside her house, and Momoi followed his instructions, but with confusion wrapping around her mind. Sure, Aomine was the type to go by his animalistic instincts, but was now really the time? However, the fire lit in his eyes told Momoi something different, and she followed the instincts.

Since Aomine had been a childhood friend of Momoi's, he led them both into her room. Momoi wanted to protest against this, since it was a girl's room, but Aomine wouldn't hear any of her complaints. Removing his hand from her mouth, he closed the door behind him and sat down on her bed. Noticing an envelope on her nightstand, he picked it up.

"Dai-chan," Momoi whispered, her hands over her mouth now. Was Aomine suspicious now? Would he even know? Could she even explain the letter?

Aomine looked up at her. "It's okay, Satsuki," he assured her. "I got a letter too."

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Did anyone here expect Aomine to be first? I think some of you might have expected him to be the first. Anyways, do you have any changes to the mystery dead person that you'd like to make? The poll has been refreshed on my profile, so vote there!


	9. letter nine

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Hello everyone! Again, I do apologize for the wait, but Thanksgiving break is upong us, which means updates will be slightly faster if I am not slow with my online classes and other schoolwork that I must do. Also, I am not sure if anyone keeps up, but I do have a Wattpad & Twitter account, which means it is easier for me to be sucked into new fandoms, which has happened on more than one occasion. Nevertheless, I am still here.

I am surprised at the number of follows and faves. 42 favorites and 64 follows is amazing so far, and I thank each and every one of you that is still here, reading the ninth installment of this fic. Please continue to review and give lots of support to this fic, for that is what keeps it going. I treasure you all very much.

Psychological Conditions: Dissociative Identity Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Anxiety

* * *

 **JUNE 30**

"It's okay, Satsuki, I got a letter too."

When Momoi heard Aomine say that, her mind went completely blank. She hadn't thought that anyone else got a letter like her. In fact, she was prepared to have to explain this entire mess to Aomine, the more unintelligent person in the Generation of Miracles. To hear that Aomine actually received a letter was shocking, yet wonderful to Momoi.

Aomine reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. He unfolded it and handed it to Momoi, who graciously accepted it. She read the contents on the page, and with the first couple words on the page, she knew it was indeed a letter written to Aomine from the future version of Aomine Daiki.

"Was this given to you the day of the opening ceremony?" Momoi asked. Aomine nodded in response.

 _Aomine Daiki, you dumb idiot. Satsuki might even call you 'Ahomine.' Don't be offended if she does, it's all in good nature. Anyways, what's up? I'm writing this letter to you from the future. Actually, I have a huge favor to ask of you, and I want you to erase the regret I am carrying. Not just for you, but so that you don't follow the same path that led me to it._

"Regret," Momoi whispered, as if it were forbidden. "My letter mentions regret, but is it regretful?"

Aomine's grave expression didn't change. "If our future selves regret what they did in high school, then it was."

"What was so regretful? Dai-chan, I don't get it," Momoi said. "Nothing so far was regretful, was it?" Aomine didn't quite meet her eyes, and Momoi took a hint. "Ki-kun," she whispered, and Aomine flinched. Momoi knew that she had hit the jackpot when she said his name.

"My letter mentioned him," Aomine started. "It said that something tragic would happen to him. The day of the festival, I sort of forgot, and then it happened right when I remembered." He turned to look at Satsuki. "Was it my fault?"

Momoi shook her head. "It would never be your fault, Dai-chan. You can't be responsible for his reaction, or the girl's actions towards him. It's her fault, anyways." Aomine was unconvinced, and Momoi breathed. Putting a hand on his shoulder, she kept going. "It'll be okay, Dai-chan. We will definitely save him."

Aomine gave her a tiny smile, and he nodded. "Save Kise."

Momoi nodded. "Yes," she said, "Let's save Ki-kun."

* * *

 **JULY 1**

Akashi created a mandatory practice session that day (when were practices not mandatory though?). Earlier that day, Coach Sanada had tracked down Aomine outside of the school and promised him that as long as he helps Teiko win their games, he is free to skip practice. None of the other Miracles were really on board with his surprise, rash decision though. Akashi, as captain, would not stand for this either.

"Is that even okay?" Kise asked, concerned.

"I don't know what the head coach's intentions are, but I share your sentiments," Akashi replied. He picked up a ball and dribbled it on the ground beneath him. The two of them stood in silence until Murasakibara walked by.

"Hey Aka-chin, I don't like losing, so I've kept coming for practice up until now, but if we win without that, I don't wanna have to do it either," Murasakibara drawled. His gaze was menacing, even for Akashi. It was as if he was asked the captain to try him at this. "If Mine-chin can do it, I was thinking, maybe I should stop practicing too."

Akashi was firm in his decision though. "Don't say such ridiculous things. There's no way I could permit that."

"But there's no way I can lose right now," Murasakibara went on, and Akashi had a sudden thought to slap the arrogance out of the purple haired giant at that moment. "Plus, I've been following you this entire time, because I felt that no matter what, I could never win against Aka-chin. But recently, I've begun to feel that maybe that's not the case. I don't want to listen to someone who is weaker than me." He looked straight down at Akashi when he said this.

Akashi's eyes widened and narrowed again, determination fierce in his eyes. The fire drove him to say, "What did you just say?" He was not going to back down, he was going to prove that he is still his captain, and that he should listen to his captain's orders.

Momoi ran in front of Murasakibara, dropping her clipboard in the process. The clipboard hit the floor, rattling for a moment before going still. "What are you saying, Mukkun?" she asked, panic evident in her voice. "You're joking, right? And if you fight, the coach will…"

Akashi stopped her before she said any more. He put a hand on her shoulder, not wanting anyone to get in his way. The fire in his eyes scared Momoi even when she saw them, and she stepped aside. "I won't let this slide, Murasakibara. The captain does not have to be the strongest player on the team, but it's a different matter entirely if you speak so openly against me. If you will only listen by force, then force I must use. Don't flatter yourself." Picking up the ball he had been dribbling, he pointed at Murasakibara. "One on one. The first to take five points win."

Momoi's eyes widened. "Is this really happening?" she whispered, but nobody heard her.

"We'll see what happens, Aka-chin," Murasakibara answered.

The match started, and to everyone's shock, Murasakibara quickly stole four of the five points necessary to win the match. Murasakibara was continuously shutting Akashi down with his blocks, so Akashi had not scored a single point at all at this point. The height difference between the two players were largely the reason for this.

"He stopped him again," Kise said, absolutely floored by Akashi's appalling performance thus far. He hadn't expected his captain to be this weak; he's always put him on a pedestal, one much similar to Aomine. Even if he can't compare in height or strength, Kise had believed that his captain would have able to compete with speed and accuracy. However, the match was too one-sided for Akashi to win.

Midorima was just as floored as Kise was. Since the two of them had always played shogi together, Midorima never recalled a time when Akashi had admitted defeat. In fact, the redhead had confirmed that he has never tasted defeat before. However, at the rate Akashi was going at, defeat was inevitable.

"Is that all?" Murasakibara said, just as appalled with Akashi's performance as much as everyone else. "I thought you'd be harder to beat, but I guess that's it? Honestly, I'm disappointed. I don't think I would ever listen to someone this weak. Anyways, one more point and I get to do whatever I want, just like we promised."

Akashi didn't believe it either. He had believed that he could use his speed and tactical strategy in order to win, but clearly that was not the case. Was he going to lose, and for the first time too? Did an Akashi ever lose, though?

Akashi sucked in a deep breath, and suddenly, the air grew thicker, as if something was infesting the atmosphere. "I, who wins everything, am always right."

Opening his eyes to look at the court in front of him, revealing two eyes with bright red rims, he watched Murasakibara make his move again. However, Akashi didn't move an inch this time. This time, he only moved his arm.

The sound of a basketball hitting the floor rang throughout the gym, and everyone was completely silent. Midorima, Kise, and Momoi were absolutely floored by the sudden change. If they were shocked before, that was nothing compared to this. They could feel the tension in the atmosphere and the different aura surrounding Akashi Seijuro.

"Hey, what just happened?" Kise asked, stunned.

"I don't know, in fact," Midorima replied, not daring to take his eyes off the court. Inside, he could feel the same aura that Akashi had radiated before, and the pieces of the puzzle were beginning to come together. His theory, was it correct?

"Akashi-kun," Momoi said. She could tell that something was different, that this was not the same Akashi that she and the other Miracles had grown to know over their high school years.

Akashi moved to pick up the basketball on the ground. Nearby, Murasakibara had stopped moving as soon as the ball left his grasp, shocked at how he had done that. "You're getting ahead of yourself, Atsushi. Don't make me angry." Turning to face the giant, he continued, "I'll kill anyone who opposes me, including my parents." Performing an Ankle Break on Murasakibara, he got by him easily and scored a point.

The outcome was inevitable after all, 4-5 in Akashi's favor.

Was there even a way to stop this from happening?

* * *

 **JULY 7**

Midorima and Takao considered the incident that had occurred last week to be the Switch, as they called it in secret. Most of the other Miracles were on the code name as well, with the exception of Akashi for obvious reasons.

It had been a week since the Switch had happened, and no one had really gotten past the incident yet. Kuroko, after coming back from the riverbank where Aomine was, found about Akashi's switch in personalities the worst way possible, and Takao had been in charge of calming the shadow down for the past several days. Aomine was still away most of the time, and Midorima could see the cracks in their friendship taking shape.

He didn't mind though; he's used to this, after all.

Wearing his see through gloves, he stiffly sat at his desk and stared pointlessly at his desk. Akashi was wandering the halls by himself, just as a dictator would. Momoi was staring at something in her lap, and Midorima wondered if she was crying. It wasn't his place nor his specialty to comfort others when they are down though.

Takao sat across from Midorima, holding Kuroko's hand at the same time. Midorima would certainly deny it if anyone asked if he was a little jealous of the action, but he knew that it was only good for Kuroko to hold hands with Takao. Lately, Kuroko's presence had gotten weaker after the shocking revelation, and Takao had taken it upon him to make sure his friends can still at least see him. Kuroko didn't really want to be touched, but he supposed it was okay.

"Happy birthday, Shin-chan!" Takao cheered.

Midorima glared at him. "Takao, don't be so loud," he lectured him.

Kuroko looked at Midorima. "Happy birthday, Midorima-kun," he said, devoid of any feeling possible. Midorima believed that he tried to be a little happy about it, though, and he took the comment in stride.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

"Did you have anything in mind for today?" Takao asked eagerly. "Your birthday is really important! Did you want a present? What should I get you?" And there it was, a peppy Takao that Midorima couldn't stand to bear.

"Shut up, Takao," Midorima said again, hoping that he would actually listen this time. He didn't listen at all, though, which irritated the green haired shooter. "I'm serious. Shut up."

Kuroko shook his head at Takao, signaling that he should just stop now before Midorima exploded in front of Takao. Takao understood the signal and sighed, relenting to Midorima's wishes.

Midorima really hadn't thought about his birthday in depth, but it wasn't unusual, since he never really liked his birthday in the first place. It was an occasion to get messy, and for Midorima, that was the absolute worst thing that could happen that day. He refused to be around cake or people for that long just to celebrate himself. Plus, it meant that he would attract too much attention.

"Midorima-kun, are you going to stay after practice and practice your shooting?" Kuroko asked quietly. Midorima nodded; that had been the plan. "Do you mind if I leave with Takao, then?" he asked shyly, as if he believed that Midorima would mind.

"Don't be stupid," Midorima replied. "I do not own Takao. You are free to go home with him as you wish."

Kuroko nodded. "Then Takao-kun, I will be going home with you today." Takao performed a small victory cheer and dance at that, which Midorima turned in his seat slightly to avoid blinding his eyesight with that.

* * *

Midorima slipped his shoes off carefully the moment he closed the door to his house. Placing them gently in the shoe rack, he then put on his slippers and headed for the kitchen, ready to prepare dinner for the night. His backpack was still slung over his shoulder, along with his basketball gear, and his lucky item was in his hand.

When he stepped into the kitchen, six figures were already sitting still at the table. "Happy birthday, Midorima!" chorused all six of them.

Midorima sucked in a huge breath, surprised by the faces of his parents, already home from work that day. His little sister was sitting in between them, clapping and grinning over him. She was always a sight to behold, and he loved her dearly. On the end was Kuroko, Takao, and Momoi, all there to celebrate his birthday. Though he was about to tell them off for being there, he was also happy that they were there for him (he would never admit that though).

His cheeks grew slightly red. "Thank you," he muttered.

"Onii-chan!" his sister said, clapping. "How old are you now?'

Midorima didn't really keep track of that either, but as long as he acknowledged that he was growing older day by day, it was okay. "Eighteen, in fact."

"Onii-chan is old," she pouted.

His mother came out from the table and patted Midorima's shoulder. "Happy birthday, Shintaro. Would you like some red bean soup?" she offered, holding a can in her hand. Midorima quickly took it, muttering another thank you to be polite. "Darling, your turn."

Midorima's father, who was a doctor at their private hospital, was still dressed in his lab coat and scrubs, but he managed to look decent while wearing it. Midorima noticed how clean the coat and scrubs were, which was unusual for him. Normally, they would be decked out in bacteria and blood, but this one looked new.

"Freshly washed clothes," his father answered his unsaid question. "Happy birthday," he said, gifting him some money and a pair of new basketball shoes. "Knew you needed a new pair, so I ordered this last week. Hope you like them, sport."

Midorima nodded. "Thank you, father."

Kuroko, Takao, and Momoi each presented their own gifts to Midorima, but simultaneously. Kuroko had gotten him a new manga book to read, since he rarely read any of them. Midorima was slightly ticked off, but supposed he could use the frivolity. Momoi had gotten him a package of candy and cologne, which Midorima thought was odd, but accepted it gratefully. Takao, being the best partner he could ever be, got the boy more of his lucky item, which happened to be sportswear. Midorima was thankful because he could wear them to practice.

"Thank you, everyone," he thanked again.

"That's not all!" Takao said out of nowhere. He revealed something that he had been holding behind his back for a while now, a bouquet of flowers.

Midorima looked at Takao, slightly surprised by the action. He hadn't expected his boyfriend to get him a bouquet of flowers, much less a bouquet of roses. Of all flowers he could have possibly picked, it was roses. What was the guy thinking?

"Happy birthday, Shin-chan!" Takao gave him a goofy smile. "Do you like them?"

Midorima wished upon a star that he could hit Takao for his stupidity sometimes. "Takao, this is the wrong occasion for roses." Takao chuckled, but his arm was still extended, waiting for Midorima to take them. With a small, exasperated sigh, Midorima accepted them.

"It's not the wrong occasion if you're taking your boyfriend out after this," he winked. Midorima internally sighed; he wasn't mentally prepared to go out after this. Plus, would his family be tagging along? It had been a while since they had a proper family dinner, after all.

Momoi, tugging at Kuroko's arm, bowed to the Midorima family and Takao. "I think it's time we take our leave. Right, Tetsu-kun?"

Kuroko nodded, fidgeting with his hands at the same time. "Yes," he said. "Happy birthday again, Midorima-kun. I hope you have a wonderful evening." Momoi agreed, and she quickly led Kuroko out of the house.

Once outside, Momoi practically dragged Kuroko back to his home. Sometime back there, Momoi had a strange feeling of what the dinner conversation might turn into, so without hesitation, she got out of there quickly. It would lighten the awkward tension surrounding the odd group of friends, and Momoi thought it would be better if it was a more family centered dinner, rather than a surprise birthday party.

Kuroko unlocked the door, and the two of them go into Kuroko's bedroom, like they had done a couple months before. Momoi sat down on Kuroko's bed, and the teal haired boy sat next to her on the bed.

"Why are you here, Momoi-san?" Kuroko asked initially, but seemed like he wanted to take it back. "I don't mean to be rude, but - "

"I know, Tetsu-kun," Momoi said, a small smile gracing her lips. Of course she would understand what her crush had meant. "I'm here because I want to. Is that so bad?"

"Of course not, Momoi-san," Kuroko replied. "Would you like any tea or some dinner?"

Momoi thought about it. "Some tea and sweets would be okay for now. I can wait until dinner, unless you want me to cook it."

Kuroko shook his head. Frankly, he would not like to die by food poisoning. "Tea and sweets is fine," he said. He got off the bed to go retrieve the food and drinks.

Meanwhile, Momoi scoped the room. Just like the last time she had been here, Kuroko's room was as neat and tidy as ever. The basketball posters hadn't changed, though one of them was missing since last time. Momoi felt a twinge of sadness; what had happened to the poster? It must not have meant much if Kuroko hadn't replaced it yet.

On Kuroko's desk, there was a pad and pencil lying about. It peaked Momoi's interest, and though she knew that she shouldn't be looking at it, she peered closer to read the kanji on the page. She scanned through the words quickly yet carefully, trying not to miss a word on the page. She also had to commit the words to memory. What if they were important to solving the mystery of the dead Miracle?

"Momoi-san, the tea and sweets are ready," Kuroko announced, setting the tray on the table. "What were you looking at?" he asked out of curiosity.

Momoi turned around and laughed. "Just a book on your shelf. It's called _No Longer Human_ , and I thought it was an interesting title for a book."

Kuroko set out a cup, filled with lemon tea. "Ah, I don't think I've gotten around to reading that one yet. Akashi had recommended it to me, but I haven't had the time to read, not since the Switch." At the name, he took in a gulp, and Momoi knew that he was slightly affected by the identity swap.

Momoi picked up the cup and sipped at the hot tea. The lemon scent was strong, both in smell and taste. It wasn't distasteful though, so she continued to drink away. "Where did things go wrong?" she whispered, remembering the match that Akashi and Murasakibara were in.

"I'm not sure," Kuroko answered truthfully. "Midorima-kun and I have had our suspicions for some time now, but we never thought to ask about it. I suppose it is too late to ask, since our theory was confirmed."

"You knew?" Momoi asked, surprised. She hadn't expected anyone to pick up on subtle hints, and for Akashi, that would have been a difficult task.

Kuroko nodded. "He seems to lower his guard the slightest bit around us. Midorima-kun used to be around him a lot, so he picked up on it eventually. He confided into me earlier, and I formed the rest whenever it was the two of us."

Momoi nodded, understanding. "And now Akashi is very distant with us."

"Yes, he is. I wonder if this is a result of his father's teachings," Kuroko said. "Midorima and I have studied some psychology, so we've been investigating the causes and what this might be. However, neither of us are sure of what's going on, nor are we that close to him anymore, so we can't properly figure out what might be wrong."

Momoi finished her tea and set her cup back on the tray. "I see. Are you two going to pursue this any further?"

"No," Kuroko replied firmly. "It was just a theory we had a while ago, and now it is confirmed. There is no reason to continue, unless there is way to pull the old Akashi out. But that is impossible in the state we are left at."

Momoi had no choice but to agree with Kuroko's words. "Alright. I must be going now. Good night, Tetsu-kun," she said, waving to Kuroko. "See you tomorrow!"

Kuroko didn't wave. "Goodbye, Momoi-san."

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

So I sort of tried to keep the birthday part of the Orange manga alive, but it kind of flopped on me. I'm really sorry. I hope you liked the small MidoTaka moment though. On another note, has anyone figured out where this fic might be headed for the next couple chapters? We're still following the Teiko Middle School arc, so that might be a huge hint to you all. I hope you all enjoyed the Akashi swap in identities as well.

As usual, please leave a review below, and vote on the new poll for the mystery dead character. Kise's numbers are going up, and Kuroko's is always increasing, what does this mean...


	10. letter ten

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

First off, I'd like to apologize that this chapter may not what some of you expected. According to Orange canon, this was supposed to be a very bittersweet chapter, but I'm holding that off for another chapter or two longer because this isn't the right place for this. Instead, this will pick up the pace in plot since we are so behind time-wise. We're supposed to be in September, but instead, we're in July, and the Inter High arc has gone on long enough. So in other words, this indeed is a basketball chapter. It's still necessary though, if you remember anything from the Teiko arc.

I'm also really sorry about the whole addition in subplots. Some of them kind of went a little astray of what they were supposed to be, and I took some time to rethink my plot and where I want the fic to go. Therefore, I am rescinding my decision on Murasakibara; instead, I have a better idea of what I want to do with him. For the childlike person of the Miracles, he sure does have a brain, and that is what I will emphasize on.

I'm also really really sorry for not updating in the last month. However, I finished exams and am on winter vacation now, so I shall be updating several times throughout this vacation. I hope you all stay hyped because I have some interesting things planned for the next chapter or two.

*Psychological Condition: N/A

* * *

 **JULY 11**

Momoi was not thrilled to hear that the semifinals and finals would be played on the same night. Unfortunately, it was not her call to make, so she took it as it was and announced the statement to the rest of the Teiko Basketball first string. Needless to say, many of them were not pleased with the results, except for the Miracles themselves.

"And? It'll be okay, Satsuki," Aomine groaned. It was particularly easy for him to say, since his letter told him that he would win today's games and therefore win the Inter High.

"We can manage," was all Kise said. He glanced over to the other occupied court in the gym, noticing the scoreboard. The buzzer had just rung, signaling the end of the game. "Looks like the finals will be against Meiko High School."

Kuroko glanced over to the other scoreboard, reading the 67-66 win that Meiko just earned. He noticed their screams, their excessive joy shining through their voices as they rang throughout the gymnasium. For a moment, he wished that Teiko could be that bright, that shining again.

Inside of him, his pride was burning. One of Meiko's members was Ogiwara Shigehiro, someone who used to be very close to the shadow. Kuroko realized that he had not shown him his newfound abilities yet, or at least, not today. Right now, they were about to play their semifinal game to determine who would compete against Meiko in the finals. Of course, the result was already known, but Kuroko kept a reasonable amount of doubt within him. Someone could turn the tide in this competition.

"Coach," Kuroko asked. "Can you put me in the start for the next game?"

All heads turned in his direction. Akashi didn't reply; he merely looked away from him. If Kuroko had not asked, he most likely would not have played in this match. After all, no one had been relying on his skillset lately.

"Do you have a reason?" the head coach asked, and Kuroko nodded. "Very well. Play as a starting member. Kise, you're on the bench." Kise nodded and bowed his head to the coach. Kuroko thanked him for allowing him to play.

The semifinal game against Rakuzan began very smoothly, even if Momoi's data had been accurate. Though three of the Uncrowned Kings had been on the opposing team, it did not take very long for Akashi to find their weaknesses and have them exposed for the audience to see. After finding their weaknesses, he easily beat them on the court without assistance from any of the other Miracles on the court, including Kuroko.

"Oi Akashi, pass the ball any day now," Aomine snapped. It was clear that he did not like being second best to him.

"When you're in a better position," Akashi clipped back. The click of Aomine's tongue was audible, much to Kuroko's dislike.

The second quarter began, and somehow, after their poor performance in the first quarter, Rakuzan came back strong. They one upped their abilities, proving that they weren't mediocre players like Akashi had predicted and shown earlier. Akashi put on his devilish smirk, clearly liking this show.

Holding the ball in his hand, Aomine made the first basket of the quarter. It wasn't much a shock, since he was the ace, after all. He quickly went on to score more points in Teiko's favor. Even if Rakuzan had stepped up their game, it did not mean they were anywhere close to the Generation of Miracles's level.

"They have a while to go before they can even challenge us," Kise remarked from the sideline.

Rakuzan soon took possession of the ball. They stormed down the court, ready to earn their points back, but Kuroko had other plans. As much as he admired Rakuzan's pure efforts, he was still in favor for his team to win. The competitive aura he normally had was held within his eyes, and Kuroko easily intercepted the ball as it went from Mibuchi Reo to Hayama Kotaro. He sent the ball flying towards Midorima, who was in scoring position.

Another three points for Teiko High School.

Teiko returned to their defense stances. Mibuchi gained possession of the ball and hurried to the other side of the gym. Midorima, playing the same position as Mibuchi, followed closely behind, trying to mark him along the way. When Reo got into scoring position, Midorima was ready to block his incoming shot. Mibuchi pulled his arms back, but he never released the ball from his hand.

Midorima watched as Kuroko, seeing through Mibuchi's moves, ran up to double guard him. He also watched as the blue haired boy was smacked on the head by Mibuchi's elbow with enough force for the boy to go down onto the gym floor. The purpling bruise wasn't helping the situation either. Mibuchi, realizing that he hit someone, darted his eyes to and from the scene playing out in front of him.

All of the Miracles's eyes were on the court, having watched their phantom sixth man been hit. Their mouths were hanging, not believing what had happened. After a referee asked for him to be moved to the infirmary, Momoi followed the two men as they lifted Kuroko onto a stretcher and hauled him away from the basketball court.

Akashi's eyes narrowed, and his one yellow eye was sparkling in an evil manner. "Demolish them," was the order, and the regulars nodded. They were all angry, and they would do anything to ensure that what they had done, accident or not, would not be forgiven so easily.

Teiko won the semi-final game, 139-31.

* * *

Momoi was perched in one of the chairs in the infirmary. Though it was uncomfortable to sit in, Momoi would sit in it and wait until her crush woke up. From her perspective, she found Kuroko's sleeping oddly cute. The boy seemed so serene when he slept, almost like a baby.

Of course, she had known that this would happen. The letter had predicted this event happening as well, and it had yet to be wrong. Momoi didn't think there was a way to stop it from happening, though.

When the semi-final match ended, Momoi got up to leave the room, knowing that the Miracles would soon be heading in this direction. Stronger or not, they all still withheld some sort of feeling towards their shadow, even if it was deep down and locked away. She stood by the door, awaiting their arrival.

An unfamiliar person came to visit though. With his burning orange hair and green slacks, Momoi suspected that he was from their final opposing team, Meiko High School. Going through her data (the one stored in her memory), she believed that this was Ogiwara Shigehiro, one of the regulars on the Meiko team.

With concerned eyes, Ogiwara asked, "Is Kuroko-kun here?"

Momoi was startled to say the least. She had not expected that someone would know him outside of their basketball club. "Oh, yeah, but he's not awake yet," she answered truthfully. She believed that he might have been a childhood friend of his, much like her and Aomine.

"I see," Ogiwara replied.

Behind him, a grave voice spoke. "And who are you? You have something for Tetsuya?"

Akashi's flaming red hair stood out above the rest in the dark, narrow hallway. His golden eye was burning maliciously, as if he was angry about the situation. Momoi wouldn't doubt it. The other Akashi would have been furious, and this Akashi was letting it show. However, his tone initiated something else, as if this Akashi was being protective of the injured Kuroko.

"I'm Ogiwara Shigehiro of Meiko High School," he replied, confirming Momoi's suspicions on the boy. "I just came to see how he was doing."

Akashi recognized the school name. "The opponent for the finals," he mused. "Unfortunately, Tetsuya will have to sit out for the next game," he said without a sign of sympathy. "I'm sure the result will be the same, but I wish you luck." With that, he walked away from the boy, towards Kuroko and Momoi.

"Hold on," Ogiwara said, steeling his resolve. He had noticed something was off on the court, and believed that everyone on the Teiko basketball team had something to do with it. Determination clear in his eye, he asked. "Do you enjoy playing basketball?"

Akashi didn't give a response to his question, but walked away, closer to his teammate and manager. Momoi let him into the room without much of a question or order from the captain. She too also disappeared behind the door, leaving Ogiwara alone in the hallway.

Saddened, Ogiwara turned on his heel and headed back towards his teammates in the locker room, preparing for the finals to begin.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Kuroko blinked his eyes open. Peering over him was a red haired captain and pink haired manager, which meant that Momoi and Akashi had come to see him. Momoi, frantic about the situation, called out his name. Kuroko registered the name in his head, and turned his head to face his captain when he addressed his well being.

Kuroko blinked, not used to the bright light just yet. "Akashi-kun, Momoi-san, what about the game?" he asked, remembering the match he had just been in.

Akashi scoffed. "Of course we won. The finals will begin in about five minutes," he answered.

Kuroko was relieved that they had won the semifinals, even though he had been knocked down halfway through the game. Remembering why he had even played that match, he shot up from the bed quickly, struggling through the bedsheets. "I'll play too," he insisted, forgetting the pounding headache he had.

Momoi shook her head, saying it was impossible for that to happen. Akashi told him, "You can't. The doctor told us to keep you in bed. So behave and lie down."

For a moment, Kuroko wondered when the red haired boy started taking orders rather than giving them. He leaned forward, asking for Akashi to put him in the game anyways. "But - "

Akashi was firm in the decision to keep him in bed for a little while longer. "I know," he confessed. "It's about Ogiwara-kun, isn't it?" At the mention of his childhood friend, Kuroko gaped. "I met him in the hallway just now. He said that we'll play again one day."

"I see," Kuroko said, understanding. Dejected by the fact that he had missed Ogiwara coming by and the fact that he would not be allowed to play in the finals, Kuroko begged Akashi for a favor. "Akashi-kun, please go full out for the finals then."

Akashi stood up, knowing it was his cue to leave as soon as possible. He knew right away that the favor would not be done in full. He knew that he could not grant it. Ensuring that Kuroko's goals were pure, he asked him, "You don't care how much we win by?"

"'I'd hate it more if you went easy on me.' I'm sure that's what he would say," Kuroko answered. Akashi nodded and left the room, ready to take on Meiko for the finals.

* * *

Kuroko woke up again towards the end of the finals. He heard the creak of the door when Momoi walked in to check up on him. Quietly, she closed the door and approached his bedside.

"How is the game going?" Kuroko asked.

"They just started the fourth quarter, and we have a huge lead," Momoi replied, but Kuroko noted the lack of pride in her voice. She almost sounded sad when she announced the news.

Kuroko sat up in the bed, tossing the hospital bedsheets aside. He swung his legs over the bed and stuck his feet inside the slippers provided for him. "I'm going to look."

Alarmed, Momoi tried to stop him. Raising a hand, she objected, "You shouldn't, Tetsu-kun."

In truth, Momoi knew what was happening on the court. While Meiko continued to put their best foot forward, Teiko decided to play a secondary game during the match. Momoi had arrived to the benches just in time to overhear the plan Akashi devised for the finals. What Akashi had concocted was with evil intentions, the plan to hurt their opponents mentally. Momoi objected the plan immediately, and even voiced out her opinions, but to no avail.

No one on the team was listening to anyone anymore. They all just agreed to go by Akashi's plan in fear that something would happen if they didn't.

With tears hiding in the corners of her eyes, Momoi watched the game progress, giving out towels when needed and refilling water bottles. To the other members on the first string, she asked them politely that they were allowed to leave the gymnasium as they wished, and she would cover their absence. Many of them had taken her word and disappeared within the first quarter of the game. When Momoi could not take it any more, she disappeared and headed for the infirmary.

 _July 11:_ _Today is a day of sadness, because everything you have known will crumble into pieces. You will attain victory at the finals, but at a huge cost. Be prepared for anything that might come your way, Momoi. Please change the future, I know you can do it!_

With bright, genuine eyes, Kuroko smiled. "At the very least, I want to see the results with my own eyes."

It took a lot of Momoi's remaining strength to not cry. "Are you sure, Tetsu-kun?" she asked. "You had a concussion, you need to be resting more." She tried to push him back down, anything to keep him away from the court.

 _He can't come see this, this is an awful, awful game._

Kuroko patted her shoulder. "It's okay, Momoi-san," he reassured her. "I took some pills to relieve the headache. Please, let me see how this ends."

Momoi wanted to protest even more, wanted to strap his body to the bed so that he didn't see how far gone the Miracles were. She didn't want to see him in any more pain that he already has.

Kuroko gave her a small smile and stood up from the bed. He strided towards the door and headed down a hallway, where a television set was set up outside the gym for people who wanted to see the game but couldn't for other reasons. Momoi hurried behind him, crossing her heart that nothing awful had happened while she was away.

The two of them watched as Teiko scored another basket, a two pointer. Kuroko noticed how they were all doing a man to man defense, how hard the other team was breathing, and how odd the defense seemed to be. Then, Meiko earned the ball and ran down the court, Ogiwara leading the pack. Kuroko glanced at the clock. Fifteen seconds left in the game, and the score was 111-9.

A sudden thought reached Kuroko, and he fought back the urge to scream. He wondered if Akashi had listened to his one request earlier, but a small part of him knew that he didn't really listen to his intentions.

On the court, he saw Ogiwara pass Aomine. In the heat of the moment, Ogiwara shot the ball, but the ball hit the rim and bounced off. Kuroko, eyeballing Aomine's slower movements, knew that the ace had purposely let him pass. Since Ogiwara missed, Aomine was forced to call a play.

"Oi, Murasakibara!" Aomine called out on the court.

Understanding what Aomine meant, Murasakibara, who was the closest to the net and the ball, jumped up to match the ball's height. However, he didn't grab the ball, like a normal person would have. Instead, he touched the ball enough to send it into the basketball hoop. The buzzer sounded, and two points was added to Meiko's score.

Needless to say, Ogiwara shocked at what had transpired in the last two seconds. The shock, however, didn't really sink in until he took a closer look at the scoreboard. 111-11, all ones on both sides. Overhearing Teiko's words, he realized that they had purposely made the score this way.

"Ogiwara-kun!" Kuroko said, panting hard. He had sprinted inside the gymnasium, eager to see his friend.

Ogiwara registered the voice of his longtime friend, but his shock was overpowering. Tears streaming from his eyes, he slowly turned his head to look at him, wondering how his team could have done something so cruel.

Kuroko didn't sleep for several days because of the horrifying look on Ogiwara's face after the finals.

* * *

Aomine, Kise, and Momoi were all sitting crisscrossed on the floor in Aomine's home upon Aomine's solemn request. Neither of them were speaking while Aomine prepared some honey green tea and snacks for them.

Minutes later, the boy came out and set the tray down on the coffee table, offering the treats up to them. No one made a move to get anything. Kise had been in a trance after the award ceremony, and Momoi was too furious and upset to really say anything meaningful.

After a couple of futile attempts to get someone to do something, Aomine perched himself down in between Momoi and Kise. Sighing, he rumpled his already messy hair and grabbed one of the cookies, munching on it.

"What we did was wrong, cruel, and inhumane," Aomine began. "I knew that when we started walking on the court. Sure, we wanted to have a little fun, but Akashi's plan went beyond that. It was vile, but you don't argue against Akashi."

Kise nodded. His bottom lip was trembling, and the other two suspected that he wanted to cry. Of course, it was Kise - he would not sacrifice his dignity for something this stupid.

"I know," Momoi said quietly, almost a whisper. "I know Akashi-kun made it up. I can tell that you weren't that willing to go with it." Aomine nodded. "But it doesn't take away from the fact that you did that to someone whom Tetsu-kun calls a friend."

Aomine and Kise's eyes went round at the mention. "Kurokocchi had a friend on the Meiko team?" Kise asked, voice shaky. Momoi nodded. Kise's guilt meter only increased after the affirmation. "We - we would not have done that if we had known."

Momoi leaned over and massaged Kise's shoulders for a moment. "I know that too, Ki-kun."

Suddenly, a wail was let out from Kise's mouth, and the blonde began to sob into the palms of his hands. Momoi could feel how much the blonde was shaking, and she quickly pulled him into a hug. She mumbled nothing but kind words into his ears, reassuring him that it would all be alright soon, and that she would let others know that players unwillingly had a hand in the plan.

Later, Aomine drifted off to his bedroom, claiming to be tired from the day's events. Momoi washed up the plates and cups used in the snacking and then helped an exhausted and guilty Kise home, promising that things would be alright soon.

But when was that soon going to come?

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Please remember to leave a review and add this to your favorites or following list! I appreciate all of the feedback (it's why this chapter got finished).


	11. letter eleven

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Oh look, I decided to update because I actually remembered to write this. It took me a while because I wasn't sure how to approach this one. After all, this is one of the heavier things in Orange that happens, so this has to be done right. If you are following Orange canon, you probably know what chapter I am on. I hope you all are not bored by this either. I tried making it interesting, but I will definitely be editing this chapter later.

Please continue to leave good and constructive reviews, and follow/fave if you haven't already!

*Psychological Conditions: Mentions of suicide attempt

* * *

 **JULY 23**

Now that the Inter High has ended, the Generation of Miracles have all had some time to themselves. Practices were still mandatory and demanding, but the atmosphere has shifted to harsh demands and uncomfortable silence. Still stuck in his other personality, Akashi never let anyone up on their skills, which resulted in several members of the first string team quitting.

"The Winter Cup is coming up," Akashi stated with no feeling.

Even with the upcoming demand of the Winter Cup, no one had the ambition to keep trying, keep going above and beyond for the championship. Most people knew that Teiko were the fan favorites to win the Cup, especially after the finals of the Inter High. There was no denying it.

Momoi glanced at the calendar. "The first preliminary matches begin in October, but we don't have to worry about them because we placed first in the Inter High. We're automatically in the Winter Cup."

Akashi nodded. "But we cannot simply halt our progress. Therefore, we will continue our grueling practices." No one dared to disagree. "Practice is over for the day. We will resume tomorrow immediately after school."

"Yes, captain," several voices chorused, while others just headed for the locker rooms.

Midorima remained stoic as Akashi approached him after dismissing the team. A cold chill ran down his spine, and he knew that whatever he had to say, it wasn't pleasant.

"Tetsuya has not come to practice for the last couple days," Akashi said. "Do you have any idea of what happened?" he asked.

Midorima bit back a retort that was forming in his mind. He knew as well as Akashi did that they both knew what happened and the results of it. Of course, it wasn't in Akashi's personality to feign innocence, nor to ask stupid questions, even if this was a different Akashi asking. "No," he carefully answered, gripping the pen light in his hand tightly.

"You're lying," Akashi said, noticing the slight change in Midorima's hand grip. Midorima didn't confirm nor deny his statement. Akashi forced Midorima's head down, so that their level of eye contact was the same. "Where is Tetsuya?"

Midorima responded again. "I do not know," he answered. It was the truth, and Midorima did not dare to defy Akashi's harsh glares.

Akashi wasn't thrilled with the answer, but he knew that it was a true statement. "Then, why has Tetsuya refused to come to practice?"

"He has a matter to attend to today," Midorima replied with honesty. The shadow had relayed his excuse for today's practice earlier through a letter that was placed in his shoe locker.

"And he did not run it by me first?" Akashi asked. Midorima didn't respond; he knew it would turn ugly if Kuroko had confided into his captain instead of his vice captain.

Midorima, after the Inter High finals, took some time to be alone, away from prying eyes of his family and teammates. He dug through his mind, trying to rewind what had happened in the gymnasium earlier. He looked at himself in the mirror, trying to recall what he had been thinking at the moment. He couldn't recall anything other than just to let them be, just to distance himself from the team and let things run its course. Fate would work its magic.

The very same fate that was spelled out for him in his letter happened in the gymnasium.

Midorima, knowing very well that he had to do something about the incoming future, left it as it was. Somewhere beneath him, his conscious told him that if he or anyone else decided to change the future, even just the tiniest bit, a whole other series of events would happen, and then things would be ugly. Midorima wanted things to be solved quickly, like this particular one.

This is the first and last time Midorima would let fate run its course, though.

"I suppose he did not," Midorima answered calmly. He found it odd; surely his insides must be trembling at the idea of defying Akashi Seijuro.

"Why did you not say a word about his absence and his lack of respect towards authority?" Akashi demanded, and Midorima, this time, could feel his stomach doing backflips. He didn't have an answer for him. "Shintaro, why did you let him off the hook for this?"

The sound of his first name being used left a bitter taste in Midorima's mouth. "I...don't know," Midorima said, hanging his head in defeat. There was no hope in trying to fight Akashi, not now, not ever.

"Then I suppose I will not have to tell you twice," Akashi said. Midorima read through the words as clear as day: make the same mistake again, and there would be severe consequences.

"Absolute not, nanodayo," Midorima replied.

Akashi didn't leave with a word of farewell, but instead walked past the shooter with the intent of doing a little more damage somewhere else. Midorima had a slight idea of what might occur, but he did not take the time to stop him. In the back of his mind, there was another idea blooming.

Of course, he had to confirm his suspicions before he could enact anything.

* * *

Momoi Satsuki took the time to beg Aomine to walk with her after practice. Ensuring that Aomine would do such a feat instead of sleeping on the school rooftop, she made a little scene outside the locker room, using her special girl assets to her advantage.

Blinking her eyes twice, she asked Aomine in the most innocent voice, "Dai-chan, will you accompany me home? There are scary people following me home."

"Huh?" Aomine said, looking at Momoi. He didn't believe her for a second. "There are no pedos where you live."

"But Dai-chan," she whined, "it's really scary." Momoi faked a small tear, hoping that the act would fool Aomine enough.

Kise, who had been talking to Aomine at the time when Momoi interrupted, clapped Aomine on the back. "Go walk your girlfriend home, ganguro," he mocked.

Aomine whipped around to glare at Kise, about to spew some choice words at him, but Momoi stopped him from doing so. She tugged on the sleeve of his shirt, and it was evident through Aomine's eyes that he was not about to get away with not walking home with Momoi. Sighing, he let out a defeated groan and surrendered to Momoi's wishes.

"Fine," Aomine huffed unwillingly.

"Well then, I'm out. Goodbye," Kise said, waving to the two of them.

None of his words sounded quite like his usual language and tone, which struck Momoi as odd. She usually did not pick up on things like this, but the tone of Kise's voice was almost sad, like he had given up.

Aomine glanced down at Momoi, but his eyes danced to the side, noticing a familiar yellow cell phone lying on the bench. Recognizing it as Kise's cellular device, he picked it up immediately. "Oi Satsuki, look."

Momoi frowned, eyeballing the object in Aomine's hands and automatically knowing what it was and to whom it belonged. It wasn't like Kise to leave something as precious and important as his cell phone behind, though the blonde was a tad bit forgetful at times. Believing that Kise had simply forgotten it, she asked if she and Aomine could go deliver it to Kise personally.

Aomine, however, took it the wrong way. "What do you think you're doing?" he asked, holding the cell phone out of her reach. "Are you going to interrogate the dude?"

"What?" Momoi was thoroughly confused. Where had Aomine gotten this kind of idea? "No, I - we - are going to return it to Ki-kun."

Aomine darted eyes around the gym, checking to see if anyone was close by. Noticing that Akashi and Midorima were still around, he took Momoi by the wrist and hauled her out of the gym. Luckily, the two of them were already carrying their belongings. He took her to a secluded part of the school, somewhere he could talk more freely.

"Dai-chan," Momoi started, but Aomine cut her off.

With an intense glare, Aomine inquired, "Do you have anything written for the 23rd?" he asked, referring to the letter.

Momoi blinked. She remembered reading the letter earlier that day, wondering if anything was expected to happen within the next several days. Unfortunately, nothing was written in for today, so she hadn't thought that anything would happen.

"No," she answered. "Do you?"

Aomine nodded. He reached into the contents of his school bag (something Momoi thought he would never do this month) and pulled out the letter. Unfolding it, he allowed Momoi to read the day's contents.

 _July 23: In the future, you will be with your supposed soulmate. Yes, it is your crush, Kise Ryota. Don't be dumb; ask him out one day. He won't decline. Anyways, apparently on this date, he attempted suicide. He told me this months after it occurred. He said he hung himself with a towel in his bedroom and was taken to the hospital unconscious. The name of his savior is unknown. Afterwards, he was absent for a week, the reason being that he was hospitalized. I didn't know the reason until then._

Momoi let out a small gasp. "Ki-kun…," she said, gaping at the letter. Looking at Aomine, she asked, "Does that mean Ki-kun is the mystery dead person?"

Aomine shrugged. "The last letter I got was dated in early December. It didn't say anything important, I don't think." Quite obviously, Aomine had not been notified of the specifics in the other timeline.

However, Momoi believed that this was a major step towards figuring out the mystery dead person among their friends. "What should we do, Dai-chan?"

Aomine scratched his head. "It's possible he might be thinking about it. He's been in the dumps lately since that one chick dumped him like that."

Momoi looked at the date of the letter again. It was dated July 23, the same day as today. Widening her eyes, Momoi tugged on the sleeve of Aomine's jacket with urgency. "The date of the letter, it's today. Dai-chan, we need to hurry if we're going to be on time."

Aomine nodded, following Momoi's strides as she hurried out of the school grounds.

* * *

Fortunately, it was not a long walk or run to Kise's apartment. The boy lived alone, and he had a fifteen minute walk to Teiko on most days. Aomine and Momoi walked briskly to his apartment, not wanting to waste a minute's time. After all, the extra minute could be the difference between the future changing and it not changing in the slightest.

"Please don't let us be too late," Momoi muttered under her breath as the building came into eyesight.

The building was pristine new, since it had been built only a year ago. Most of the tenants were wealthy in some way, and Kise wasn't exempt from that list. As a model, he could afford to live lavishly, and the apartment fit a growing high school teenager. Though it was spacious in most of the Miracles' opinions, Kise seemed to be okay with the luxury.

"I forget he lives in here," Aomine said. "What room?"

"325," Momoi replied hastily. "Dai-chan, do you have a key?"

Aomine looked at Momoi in a questioning manner. "Why would he give me a key? We don't live together."

"Anything to pick a lock with?" Momoi asked. Her mind was running through scenarios that she did not want to believe in, the worst case scenarios. She didn't want to think about seeing blood, or an unconscious Kise, or anything of the like, even if it was practically guaranteed that Kise wasn't going to die tonight.

Was it even guaranteed that he wouldn't die at some point though?

Aomine gave Momoi a quick grunt, indicating a no. He hurried into the building, pressing the button for an elevator. It dinged open immediately, much to his and Momoi's luck. They both hopped inside, pressing the button for the doors to close multiple times.

"Why am I panicking over this?" Aomine asked himself. "It said it had been an attempt, so I shouldn't have to be this worried, but why does it feel like I am losing him with every second that passes?"

"You like him," Momoi responded quietly. "More than friends. More than what your relationship has been lately. You love him in a romantic sense."

Aomine had the urge to punch Momoi for her insensitivity, but he refrained. As much as he hated to admit it, she was completely and utterly correct. The truth hurt to hear sometimes.

The elevator reached the third floor, and both of them scrambled to get out of the elevator. They ran down the hallway, catching some attention as their footsteps got louder and louder. Respect and manners be damned; there were more important matters to be resolved first.

Momoi screeched to a halt in front of room 325, and she knocked on the door impatiently. "Ki-kun, open up please! I have something to ask you!" Aomine looked at her, wondering if she was either crazy or actually had something to ask him. Momoi didn't answer the unsaid question, but nudged Aomine for him to say something.

"Oi, Kise, can you lend me my basketball magazine back? And my box of porn magazines too. Thanks." Turning to Momoi, he said, "Is that better?"

Momoi huffed. "Dai-chan, you shouldn't have pornography," she lectured.

"Whatever," Aomine gruffed.

Kise didn't answer the doorbell, not after their repeated attempts to get him to open up. Momoi was starting to believe that the worst case had already happened, and they would have to open up the apartment door somehow. Fishing into her school bag, she rummaged around for a bobby pin that could unlock the door.

A voice interrupted her midway. "Momoicchi? Aominecchi?" rang Kise's startled, sad voice.

Aomine eyeballed Kise's appearance. The boy was still dressed in his Teiko uniform from after basketball practice, but it was wrinkled in several areas and hung off the boy loosely. Kise had indeed lost weight, but Aomine couldn't figure out when it had started. Not only that, but he was holding two bags of groceries in his hands. For some strange reason, Aomine figured that those weren't food and drinks stowed away in the plastic bags.

"Ki-kun!" Momoi exclaimed happily, overjoyed by the fact that Kise wasn't inside his apartment withering away. "We came to bring your phone because you left it at practice today."

Kise glanced at the cell phone dangling in Momoi's hand. Part of him wanted to say that it had been on purpose, but the other part of him was not about to do that. Putting on a bright smile, he answered, "Oh really? Thank you, Momoicchi, I don't know what I'd do without this." He snatched the phone away and hurried to get inside of his apartment.

"Oi Kise, don't you still have my magazines? Can I have them back?" Aomine gruffed.

Kise didn't turn around, but he allowed the both of them to come inside. He vanished into his room to retrieve the pile of magazines. He laid the plastic bags on top of his bed as well, thinking he could put those away later.

"Did you just finish grocery shopping? We would have taken our time getting here if we knew." Momoi asked Kise when he finally emerged.

"It's my fault for forgetting my phone in the first place," Kise laughed hesitantly. "I'm sorry to have burdened you."

Momoi was quick on the uptake. "Ki-kun, we don't mind coming to deliver it back to you, nor do we mind waiting. Right, Dai-chan?" she said, poking the tanned skin giant.

"Uh yeah," Aomine nodded, following Momoi. "What Satsuki said."

Kise handed Aomine a crate full of magazines, basketball and porn alike. The magazines had all been shoved in at the last minute, and Kise hadn't bothered making it tidy and neat. Aomine wouldn't care about tidy and neat anyways, so why should Kise at this point? "Thank you for letting me borrow them for a while, Aominecchi." Looking at both of them, he continued, "Should I escort you all out?"

This was the moment of truth. If either of them said the wrong thing, Kise would force the two of them to leave his apartment, and then the future wouldn't have changed at all.

Momoi replied, "But Kise, I like your apartment! Can't I stay?" she asked, half begging. Aomine rolled his eyes, obviously finding the act not to his taste.

Kise looked taken aback at the sudden question. Scratching his blonde mop of hair, he gave her a yes, that the two of them could stay a little longer. "Do you want milk or tea?" he asked them.

"Tea," Momoi replied as Aomine replied with, "Milk." Kise didn't question it; he just retreated into the kitchen to heat up the kettle pot for a cup of tea.

Momoi heard him open up a cabinet door, which meant that Kise would be busy for a while. After all, that was the point of asking for tea. Aomine clearly had not understood that part, but it was okay. That meant that Aomine had to stay put on the couch while Momoi went to investigate things in the house.

"If Ki-kun asks, I'm using the bathroom," Momoi whispered the alibi to Aomine. He nodded, willing to cover her tracks if necessary.

Momoi slipped into the bathroom first. The medicine cabinet wasn't locked, but there were not many pills inside. A razor gleamed on one of the glass shelves, but no blood was dripping anywhere on it. She took that as a sign, and shut the medicine door. The bathtub was not filled, and nothing else screamed 'hey, I can be used to kill myself!'. She left the bathroom, ready to search his bedroom.

In his bedroom, Momoi saw the bags of groceries. She, like Aomine, believed that they weren't just groceries, and so she decided to take a peek inside one bag. Inside, she found nothing but a journal and some pens.

 _Interesting_ , she thought to herself.

Closing up the bag, thinking that the first bag is harmless enough, she opened the second bag. This bag, much to Momoi's dismay and expectations, contained several pill bottles. All of the orange bottles were filled with migraine pills, Momoi learned from reading the labels. It was over the counter medicine too, something that didn't require a prescription.

 _Could someone actually overdose from migraine pills_? Momoi did not want the answer to that.

Hearing no strange activity from the living room, Momoi proceeded to rummage the room for any sign of a note that Kise might have already written prior to their arrival. She searched under his pillow, under the bed, through his desk drawers, anywhere in his room. Any place would work; a letter can only be so big.

Momoi failed to hear a mug crack somewhere in the distance and a certain someone's calls of warning.

THe door busted open, and Momoi tried hard not to turn her head at that exact point. In her hands was something she had found while searching his drawers.

"Momoicchi, what are you doing?" Kise asked nervously, as if he had been caught in the act himself.

"Is it because of her ugly words?" Momoi found herself saying. "Or was it because of us?" She turned around to face not only Kise, but Aomine as well, as her eyes welled up with tears and her hands shook with a handwritten suicide note in its grasp.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

Reviews are highly appreciated!


	12. letter twelve

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

I finally got it through my dumb brain to finish writing this chapter and deliver something. At the same time, I decided to move forward with the plot, so I do hope you enjoy it slightly. Also forced a couple of my own feelings and thoughts somewhere in here. Also will edit this chapter later because it's pretty messy.

As always, leave a review and follow/favorite if you haven't already. I finished this chapter because of your reviews, and I'm always shocked to see the number of follows and favorites every time I come around here.

*Psychological Conditions: Attempted suicide

* * *

 **JULY 23**

Kise had no idea what to say. Sure, Momoi had invaded his personal space (his bedroom) and snooped in places she shouldn't have been snooping in, but this was insane. In her hands was the letter he had written a couple days ago, and he had hidden it very well - or at least he thought he did. It was almost as if she knew what she was looking for - wait a second, didn't she lie too?

He thought about it for a second. He could try to deny everything, say that the letter was completely foreign to him and he must have disassociated or something, but Momoi would know. She knew his handwriting. She knew how he wrote. She knew how he lied. It would not be a smart idea to lie, he supposed.

The panic arose in his chest. Would Momoi tattle on him? Would she expose him as mentally ill? Would she lock him up in a cage? Would she send him to a shrink because he needed help? Honestly, he didn't think he did; he deserved everything she had said, he deserved -

"Ki-kun," Momoi's voice rang in the distance. "Ki-kun, what are you saying?"

Kise locked himself onto Momoi's sweet, gentle voice as soon as he heard it. Although it was hard, he was attracted to the voice - it was as sweet as sugar, so pure, so kind, so gentle.

"I'm touching you, is that okay?" Momoi asked. Kise let out a noise, and she assumed it to be a yes. "Ki-kun, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gone through your things." She turned to Aomine, who had been leaning against the doorframe for quite some time. "Dai-chan, can you carry Ki-kun to his bed?"

Aomine didn't respond, but he lifted the frail boy off the ground. Noticing how light he was, he frowned as he carried him onto the bed. "Kise, why the hell do you weigh nothing?" he asked. It wasn't healthy for a basketball player, much less a Miracle, to be this light.

"I've never weighed much?" Kise said. "Akashicchi and Kurokocchi don't weigh much either," he pointed out.

"Yeah, you weighed more last month," Aomine said. "And those two are way too small for their own good." Kise let out a small 'hmph', but he didn't answer the question. Aomine didn't press for more anyways.

Aomine set the boy on his bed, and Kise almost immediately went to sleep. He figured he wasn't in the mood to answer questions, much less ever. Therefore, Aomine covered Kise up with a soft blanket, Momoi wished him a good night sleep, and the two of them crept out of the room silently.

After Momoi shut the door, they walked back into the living room. Momoi was holding tightly onto the letter in hand, but she didn't say anything else as she gathered her belongings and left Kise's apartment. Aomine followed her wordlessly.

She waited until they were safely outside his apartment and heading back home before she made a comment. "Dai-chan, should we be leaving him alone?" Momoi asked, bottom lip trembling.

Aomine sighed. While he was generally known to be an idiot, he wasn't stupid enough to play with people's feelings again. One time was more than enough for him. "Uh, probably not, but Kise probably wants his own space right now."

Momoi gave him a half smile. "You're right. He needs to process the fact that we found out about it. Let's come back tomorrow and talk to him."

Aomine shrugged. "Okay."

* * *

 **JULY 24**

True to their word, Momoi and Aomine showed up at Kise's apartment the very next day. It had been early in the morning when they rang his doorbell, the sun was only halfway up in the sky, and the sky held a beautiful orange color.

After waiting for a moment or two, Momoi revealed something she stole last night from Kise - the key to his apartment. She opened up the door to the place and let herself and Aomine inside. She then instructed Aomine to go wake up the sleeping Kise up.

Knocking on his bedroom door, Aomine did not wait for an answer to go in. Seeing the blonde still fast asleep made the guy sigh with relief. He quietly tapped on Kise's shoulder, gently trying to wake him up. "Hey Kise, it's Aomine, get up."

No response from Kise. Aomine tried again, but with more force and diction. Still no response. Worried that Kise had done something stupid overnight, he rolled him over so that Kise's face was looking at Aomine's. He checked for his pulse on his neck, to which he learned that Kise was still breathing fine, just slumbering away. Deciding that the bed looked nicer than the thought of waking Kise up from his sleep, Aomine climbed into bed with him and pulled the covers closer to the both of them.

Much to Aomine's surprise, Kise rolled over to him. His arms wrapped around Aomine's body, but Kise himself didn't wake up. As much as Aomine wanted to complain and whine about the skinship, he didn't force Kise's hands away just yet. Perhaps he even felt a little flutter in his heart for the small gesture - not that he would admit it or anything.

Momoi had luckily been able to procure some premade breakfast from the convenience store on the way to Kise's apartment, so as soon as Aomine fetched Kise, the three of them could eat. However, she ended up finding the boy in bed with Kise. She almost nagged his ear off, until she realized that Kise was holding onto Aomine. Sighing, she left the two in peace for a little while longer, and retreated to the sofa in the living room to nap.

Later, the two of them woke up naturally. Kise woke up first and stretched out his limbs. He felt oddly well rested and not very tired in the slightest. Hitting his hand against something hard, he turned to see Aomine, whose eyes were opened the tiniest bit.

Kise flashed him a small smile. "Good morning, Aominecchi."

Aomine grunted. "Morning sleepyhead."

The two of them didn't say much more after that. Momoi, who heard the commotion in the bedroom, arrived outside their door to call them to breakfast (that may or may not be cold by now). Aomine replied with a short 'okay', and proceeded to get out of bed. Kise, however, stayed in bed.

"Oi Kise, get your dumb ass up," Aomine demanded. "Before I pick up you up and carry you down myself."

Kise whined about having to leave the comforter, but obliged to Aomine having to carry him downstairs. Aomine rolled his eyes, said that he was joking about that part, and left him for breakfast.

The room was oddly quiet after Aomine departed, in Kise's honest opinion. Not that he minded, but the guy's voice filled the room just enough to make him feel like he's still there, alive and participating as a somewhat active member of society. Kise liked the quiet, but at the same time, loneliness tugged at his heart. Knowing that the party was probably in the kitchen, feasting on breakfast, Kise trudged over.

Momoi watched the two of them finally arrive for breakfast. It was almost like she was the mother watching her children get up in the morning and get ready for school. Aomine came first, then Kise followed shortly afterwards.

"What did you get at the convenience store?" Aomine asked as he sat down and dug in the food.

"Just some natto. Nothing fancy," Momoi replied.

They ate in silence. No one really had much to say in the first place. Aomine and Momoi were both glued to their phones anyways, since some of the other Miracles were texting in the group chat. Kise left his phone in his room, so he was out of the loop temporarily.

Kise, stiffened by the unnatural and unexpected silence, finally decided to break the ice. "Why are you two still here?" he asked, shoving a spoonful of natto into his mouth.

Momoi glanced at Aomine briefly before responding. "We were planning on going to the movies today with the others."

"Why didn't you just text me and wait for me to respond?" Kise asked.

"You took too long. We asked hours ago," Momoi answered.

Kise sighed. He left the kitchen table to go grab his phone, and he came back, eyes staring at his phone.

"Oh," he mumbled, "I didn't see these. Sorry Aominecchi, Momoicchi," Kise gave a tiny hint of a smile. "My manager wants me to come in today for a shoot. He just texted me a few minutes ago."

Momoi frowned. "Aw Ki-kun, it's okay! We forgot to ask if you had a modeling shoot today, so we can reschedule for a different day."

Kise nodded, heading back upstairs to get ready for the shoot. "Yeah sure, just let me know when and what movie we're seeing."

"'Kay," Aomine waved off.

The three of them left the apartment as soon as Kise was prepared and soon went their separate directions. Momoi and Aomine headed off for the mall, while Kise left for his shoot.

* * *

The shoot wrapped up quickly, and Kise was almost blessed by this. After every picture taken, the energy was draining out of Kise as if someone had left the air out of a balloon. By the end, Kise was sure he was running off of borrowed energy. From where, who knows.

"Good work out there, Kise!" someone called out.

Kise quickly thanked them before grabbing his paycheck and walked out of the premises. He noticed a car that had just pulled up in front of the building, and realized it was an Akashi limousine. Tuckered out from the day, he stumbled into a taxi and gave him directions to his apartment.

When he arrived home, he threw a wad of yen at the driver. Kise specifically made sure to tell him to keep the change too, since it'd be a hassle to take care of the extra money - plus, he's pretty well off anyways. He wouldn't miss the money. Then he walked up the stairs to his apartment and turned the key.

The apartment was silent, as per usual. It seemed as if no one had been inside in quite a while, which was true. There was only one sign that Aomine and Momoi had been by earlier, and the evidence laid on the kitchen table. Kise picked up the piece of paper and read it thoroughly.

 _Ki-kun,_

 _I'm sorry if this might be butting in a little too much, and you can hate me all you want, but will you please do me this one favor? I might have signed you up for therapy...and the appointment is tomorrow...please don't kill me! Here's the information:_

 _Who: XXX_

 _Where: 123 S Tokyo Ave_

 _When: 1PM tomorrow_

 _Please go, there's a lot of people who love and care for you, and we want to see you get better._

 _(And if you're wondering, it's fated for you to do it anyways. Sorry, I snooped a little too much!)_

 _Momoi Satsuki!_

Kise sighed as he read through it. Was she actually being serious?

Behind Momoi's letter was another envelope, and Kise recognized it right away. The white envelope had practically just laid in his room for the longest time, and he had yet to read through the contents for the last month. If Momoi was right…

Opening up the envelope, he pulled out a letter dated for the 25th of July. Sure enough, a letter existed.

 _July 25: Today was a mandatory therapy appointment with the new psychologist. It was a one on one therapy, which was nice, and the guy was pretty cool too. Turns out I'm not a lunatic too, and it's okay to feel like this. Something struck me though._

 _Did I want to get better? The answer has always been yes. I just didn't know how to go about it._

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

I'm sure some of you were surprised, mwahahahaha. Thank you for the lovely comments about Kise being the mystery dead character. I enjoyed them while they lasted.

Don't forget to leave a review!


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